Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Stock Position Raised by DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale

DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 0.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,651,446 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 11,213 shares during the quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale's holdings in Walmart were worth $222,293,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Horizon Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 1,007.7% during the fourth quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Walmart during the first quarter worth $35,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. bought a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC bought a new position in Walmart during the first quarter worth $49,000. Finally, WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $53,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 28,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total transaction of $2,716,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 1,064,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $103,252,135. This trade represents a 2.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total value of $217,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 630,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at $62,421,282. The trade was a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 142,711 shares of company stock worth $13,710,319. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on WMT shares. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $117.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Tigress Financial increased their target price on Walmart from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on Walmart from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $106.67.

Walmart Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:WMT traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $97.15. The company had a trading volume of 5,307,050 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,017,520. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.78. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $66.67 and a 1-year high of $105.30. The firm has a market cap of $775.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.78 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.43.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.76% and a net margin of 2.75%. The business had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.60 EPS. Walmart's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were given a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.95%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.17%.

Walmart Company Profile

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, other units, and eCommerce worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. It operates supercenters, supermarkets, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, cash and carry stores, and discount stores under Walmart and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands; membership-only warehouse clubs; ecommerce websites, such as walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, PhonePe and other sites; and mobile commerce applications.