Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Sold by First Horizon Advisors Inc.

First Horizon Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 49.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 231,838 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 224,595 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $20,353,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 422,736,888 shares of the retailer's stock worth $38,194,278,000 after buying an additional 2,050,683 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 90,635,238 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,167,186,000 after acquiring an additional 3,017,829 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at about $5,737,355,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Walmart by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,641,936 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,943,049,000 after purchasing an additional 3,550,037 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 42,015,818 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,796,129,000 after acquiring an additional 514,036 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:WMT traded up $0.68 on Thursday, hitting $98.29. 7,686,204 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,082,978. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $66.67 and a 12 month high of $105.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $784.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.70 and a beta of 0.68. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $97.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $94.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Walmart from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Raymond James Financial lowered their price target on Walmart from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Erste Group Bank cut Walmart from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $106.67.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total transaction of $217,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 630,518 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,421,282. The trade was a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 28,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total value of $2,716,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 142,711 shares of company stock valued at $13,710,319. Insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

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.