Liberty Wealth Management LLC Grows Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Key Points

• Liberty Wealth Management LLC significantly increased its stake in Walmart Inc. by 2,241.3%, now owning 151,693 shares worth $13.3 million.
• Multiple institutional investors raised their positions in Walmart during the fourth quarter, with a total of 26.76% of the stock owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook on Walmart, with thirty buy ratings and an average target price of $106.67 for the stock.

Liberty Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 2,241.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 151,693 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 145,214 shares during the quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $13,317,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Full Sail Capital LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Full Sail Capital LLC now owns 8,702 shares of the retailer's stock worth $786,000 after buying an additional 541 shares during the last quarter. Leslie Global Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 22.0% in the fourth quarter. Leslie Global Wealth LLC now owns 3,154 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $285,000 after purchasing an additional 568 shares during the last quarter. Monument Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 94.2% in the first quarter. Monument Capital Management now owns 55,004 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $4,829,000 after purchasing an additional 26,685 shares during the last quarter. Milestone Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 156.7% in the first quarter. Milestone Asset Management LLC now owns 54,659 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $4,799,000 after purchasing an additional 33,370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $1,404,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WMT traded up $3.96 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $103.27. 23,627,958 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 19,135,596. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $66.67 and a 12-month high of $105.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market cap of $824.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.13, a PEG ratio of 4.79 and a beta of 0.66. The business's fifty day moving average price is $96.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $95.16.

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 the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.76% and a net margin of 2.75%. Walmart's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $103.00 price objective (up previously from $102.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial dropped their target price on shares of Walmart from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $106.67.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other Walmart news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.58, for a total value of $1,855,781.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 4,412,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $421,737,000.84. The trade was a 0.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,744 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.60, for a total value of $166,726.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 649,233 shares of the company's stock, valued at $62,066,674.80. The trade was a 0.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 146,112 shares of company stock valued at $14,080,073. Insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Walmart 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.