Proffitt & Goodson Inc. Sells 5,194 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Proffitt & Goodson Inc. lessened its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 33.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 10,314 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 5,194 shares during the quarter. Proffitt & Goodson Inc.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $905,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vickerman Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Walmart by 2.4% during the first quarter. Vickerman Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 44,449 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,902,000 after acquiring an additional 1,026 shares in the last quarter. Whelan Financial boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 17.7% during the 1st quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 5,107 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $448,000 after acquiring an additional 768 shares during the last quarter. Sharp Financial Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 6.4% in the first quarter. Sharp Financial Services LLC now owns 8,388 shares of the retailer's stock worth $736,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares during the period. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.2% during the first quarter. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. now owns 164,353 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $14,429,000 after purchasing an additional 5,064 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 8.7% during the first quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 366,361 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $32,163,000 after purchasing an additional 29,475 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.19, for a total transaction of $1,887,041.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,431,783 shares in the company, valued at approximately $430,724,989.77. This represents a 0.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.44, for a total transaction of $216,568.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 628,318 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $61,851,623.92. This trade represents a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 142,711 shares of company stock worth $13,710,319. Insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price 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. Raymond James Financial dropped their price target on Walmart from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $106.67.

Walmart Price Performance

NYSE WMT traded up $0.68 on Friday, reaching $98.29. The company had a trading volume of 7,686,204 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,068,909. The stock has a market capitalization of $784.40 billion, a PE ratio of 42.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 0.68. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $66.67 and a 12 month high of $105.30. 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 firm's 50 day moving average price is $97.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $94.36.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.76% and a net margin of 2.75%. The firm had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.60 earnings per share. The business's quarterly 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 Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued 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%.

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.