Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. Lowers Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. trimmed its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 5.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 442,485 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 23,862 shares during the period. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $38,846,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Horizon Financial Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 1,007.7% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 1st quarter worth $49,000. Finally, WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on WMT. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Walmart from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Wall Street Zen raised Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on Walmart from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $106.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total value of $217,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 630,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at $62,421,282. This represents a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 28,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total transaction 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 represents a 2.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 140,951 shares of company stock valued at $13,543,436. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Trading Down 0.3%

WMT stock opened at $95.11 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market cap of $759.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.65, a PEG ratio of 4.59 and a beta of 0.68. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.56. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $66.67 and a 52 week high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.03. The company 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%. The firm's revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.60 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

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.

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.