SlateStone Wealth LLC Has $6.35 Million Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Key Points

• SlateStone Wealth LLC reduced its stake in Walmart Inc. by 6.3%, now holding 72,328 shares valued at approximately $6.35 million.
• Institutional investors significantly increased their positions, with GAMMA Investing LLC raising its stake by a staggering 9,896.9% during the same quarter.
• Walmart recently announced a dividend of $0.235, yielding 0.95%, with a current payout ratio of 40.17% as of May 27th.

SlateStone Wealth LLC reduced its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 6.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 72,328 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 4,870 shares during the quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $6,350,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Whelan Financial grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 4,339 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $392,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,937 shares of the retailer's stock worth $538,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. lifted its stake in Walmart by 0.4% in the first quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 25,915 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,275,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Scott & Selber Inc. raised its holdings in Walmart by 3.7% in the first quarter. Scott & Selber Inc. now owns 2,920 shares of the retailer's stock worth $256,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.4% during the first quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,794 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $684,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT stock traded down $0.74 on Wednesday, hitting $97.59. 13,844,039 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 12,240,789. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The company has a market capitalization of $778.81 billion, a PE ratio of 41.71, a PEG ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 0.68. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $66.67 and a 1-year high of $105.30. The company's fifty day moving average is $96.78 and its 200 day moving average is $94.93.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.14, for a total transaction of $1,248,712.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 932,313 shares of the company's stock, valued at $88,700,258.82. This trade represents a 1.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.44, for a total value of $216,568.00. Following the sale, 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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 146,112 shares of company stock worth $14,078,027. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $103.00 target price (up previously from $102.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Walmart from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Raymond James Financial reduced their price objective on Walmart from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Two 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's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $106.67.

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.