Scotia Capital Inc. Sells 60,014 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Scotia Capital Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 5.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 974,833 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 60,014 shares during the quarter. Scotia Capital Inc.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $85,575,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cheviot Value Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the first quarter worth $164,000. Liberty Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2,241.3% during the first quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC now owns 151,693 shares of the retailer's stock worth $13,317,000 after acquiring an additional 145,214 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.1% during the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. now owns 5,263 shares of the retailer's stock worth $462,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.4% during the first quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 481,955 shares of the retailer's stock worth $42,311,000 after acquiring an additional 15,719 shares during the period. Finally, R Squared Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 360.4% during the first quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 12,550 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,102,000 after acquiring an additional 9,824 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.85, for a total transaction of $1,258,031.25. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 945,434 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $90,619,848.90. This represents a 1.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,148 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.58, for a total transaction of $2,815,113.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,451,199 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $429,896,799.42. This trade represents a 0.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 143,912 shares of company stock worth $13,863,813. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $98.40 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $96.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $95.05. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $66.67 and a 12-month high of $105.30. The firm has a market cap of $785.27 billion, a PE ratio of 42.05, a PEG ratio of 4.74 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 21.76%. The firm had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.60 EPS. The business's revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Walmart from $112.00 to $110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $106.67.

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.

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