Russell Investments Group Ltd. Has $250.33 Million Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its holdings in Walmart Inc. by 1.4%, now owning 2,854,340 shares valued at approximately $250 million as of the end of the most recent quarter.
• Walmart's latest quarterly earnings showed a profit of $0.61 per share, exceeding analyst estimates, with revenue reaching $165.61 billion for the quarter.
• Walmart announced a dividend of $0.235 per share to be paid on September 2, reflecting a strong dividend payout ratio of 40.17%.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 1.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,854,340 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 39,590 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $250,325,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its stake in Walmart by 432.4% during the first quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 362 shares of the retailer's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Walmart by 6.6% in the first quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,530,781 shares of the retailer's stock worth $133,785,000 after acquiring an additional 94,913 shares in the last quarter. Tlwm boosted its holdings in Walmart by 2.1% in the first quarter. Tlwm now owns 20,662 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,814,000 after acquiring an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart by 5,549.8% in the first quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC now owns 14,407 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,265,000 after acquiring an additional 14,152 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rossmore Private Capital boosted its holdings in Walmart by 1.5% in the first quarter. Rossmore Private Capital now owns 65,616 shares of the retailer's stock worth $5,760,000 after acquiring an additional 1,001 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WMT opened at $104.01 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $830.08 billion, a PE ratio of 44.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.99 and a beta of 0.66. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $67.14 and a fifty-two week high of $105.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.78. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $97.38 and a 200-day moving average of $95.46.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.60 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.30, for a total transaction of $216,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 626,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at $61,547,399.40. The trade was a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.14, for a total value of $1,248,712.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 932,313 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $88,700,258.82. This trade represents a 1.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 146,112 shares of company stock valued at $14,080,073 in the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Truist Financial increased their price target on Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $103.00 price target (up previously from $102.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, June 9th. Mizuho increased their price target on Walmart from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $106.67.

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.

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