M Holdings Securities Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Key Points

• M Holdings Securities Inc. increased its stake in Walmart Inc. by 15.0%, owning 46,866 shares valued at approximately $4.11 million after acquiring an additional 6,097 shares during the first quarter.
• Walmart reported a quarterly EPS of $0.61, surpassing estimates, with a revenue increase to $165.61 billion, up 2.5% year-over-year.
• The company announced a dividend of $0.235, to be paid on September 2nd, with a recorded dividend yield of 90.0% and a payout ratio of 40.17%.

M Holdings Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 15.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 46,866 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 6,097 shares during the period. M Holdings Securities Inc.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $4,114,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 0.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 425,961,042 shares of the retailer's stock worth $37,395,120,000 after acquiring an additional 3,224,154 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 8.9% in the fourth 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. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 30.1% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 33,292,749 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,922,770,000 after purchasing an additional 7,706,201 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 29,843,892 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,696,396,000 after purchasing an additional 233,040 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.9% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 29,188,142 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,562,427,000 after purchasing an additional 823,020 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Walmart Price Performance

NYSE:WMT traded up $0.6140 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $101.3140. The company had a trading volume of 16,867,750 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,559,792. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.72 and a 52-week high of $105.30. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $97.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $95.62. The company has a market capitalization of $808.53 billion, a PE ratio of 43.30, a P/E/G ratio of 4.84 and a beta of 0.66. 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 Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a yield of 90.0%. Walmart's payout ratio is currently 40.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price target (up previously from $112.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $117.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, May 16th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $112.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $109.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.14, for a total value of $380,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 1,056,455 shares of the company's stock, valued at $100,511,128.70. The trade was a 0.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.14, for a total transaction of $1,248,712.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 932,313 shares of the company's stock, valued at $88,700,258.82. This represents a 1.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 141,989 shares of company stock valued at $13,692,478 over the last three months. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.