Michels Family Financial LLC Invests $533,000 in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Michels Family Financial LLC bought a new stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 5,902 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $533,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $1,326,000. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC increased its position in Walmart by 26.0% in the fourth quarter. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC now owns 5,203 shares of the retailer's stock worth $470,000 after buying an additional 1,075 shares during the last quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $2,367,000. Jupiter Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 23.8% during the 4th quarter. Jupiter Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,482 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,128,000 after buying an additional 2,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, North Star Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. now owns 10,645 shares of the retailer's stock worth $962,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $102.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, May 16th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $110.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Erste Group Bank downgraded Walmart from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $104.94.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $96.49 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $92.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $92.90. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $64.16 and a 12-month high of $105.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $772.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.04, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.70.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The firm had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.60 EPS. The company's revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is currently 40.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 28,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total value of $2,716,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,064,455 shares of the company's stock, valued at $103,252,135. This represents a 2.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.95, for a total transaction of $2,823,571.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,558,247 shares in the company, valued at $344,972,046.65. This trade represents a 0.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 177,583 shares of company stock worth $16,701,404. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WMT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.