Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Purchased by Richard P Slaughter Associates Inc

Richard P Slaughter Associates Inc raised its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 218.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,531 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 10,659 shares during the quarter. Richard P Slaughter Associates Inc's holdings in Walmart were worth $1,363,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $5,737,355,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,306,627,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 9,896.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,939,728 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $697,029,000 after buying an additional 7,860,306 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in Walmart by 37.1% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 25,339,448 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,289,419,000 after buying an additional 6,860,189 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Walmart by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 32,020,800 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,893,079,000 after purchasing an additional 3,927,173 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total value of $217,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 630,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at $62,421,282. The trade was a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,148 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.58, for a total value of $2,815,113.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,451,199 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $429,896,799.42. This represents a 0.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 137,534 shares of company stock worth $12,833,664 over the last three months. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Walmart Trading Down 1.5%

Walmart stock traded down $1.53 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $97.82. The company had a trading volume of 15,800,659 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,879,709. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market cap of $782.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.59, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $94.33 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $93.67. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.64 and a 1 year 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 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $164.53 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The company's revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WMT. Mizuho assumed coverage on Walmart in a report on Friday, April 11th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $105.00 target price for the company. Roth Mkm reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $108.00 price target (up previously from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 21st. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $105.16.

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.