Easterly Investment Partners LLC Decreases Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Easterly Investment Partners LLC lessened its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 28.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 59,098 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 23,970 shares during the quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $5,188,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Eagle Capital Management LLC increased its position in Walmart by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 3,861 shares of the retailer's stock worth $349,000 after buying an additional 321 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Walmart by 28.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer's stock worth $8,868,000 after buying an additional 21,939 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in Walmart by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,849 shares of the retailer's stock worth $800,000 after buying an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE increased its position in Walmart by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 36,945 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,338,000 after buying an additional 1,720 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Madison Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth about $242,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.85, for a total transaction of $1,258,031.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 945,434 shares in the company, valued at $90,619,848.90. This trade represents a 1.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.19, for a total value of $1,887,041.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 4,431,783 shares of the company's stock, valued at $430,724,989.77. This trade represents a 0.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 142,695 shares of company stock worth $13,710,162. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on WMT shares. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $103.00 price target (up previously from $102.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, June 9th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Walmart from $112.00 to $110.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Walmart from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $106.67.

Walmart Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of WMT traded down $0.08 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $95.01. The company had a trading volume of 14,622,243 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,101,154. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $66.67 and a 1-year high of $105.30. The stock has a market cap of $758.22 billion, a PE ratio of 40.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.58 and a beta of 0.68. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $96.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 the consensus estimate of $164.53 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

About Walmart

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.