Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Position Increased by Ethos Financial Group LLC

Key Points

• Ethos Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 149.7% in Q1, owning a total of 36,510 shares valued at approximately $3.29 million.
• Walmart's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $0.61, surpassing the consensus estimate by $0.03, with a revenue of $165.61 billion, reflecting a 2.5% year-over-year increase.
• The company announced a dividend of $0.235 to be issued on September 2nd, with a payout ratio of 40.17% and a yield of 90.0%.

Ethos Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 149.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 36,510 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 21,890 shares during the period. Ethos Financial Group LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $3,292,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,532,331,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 9,896.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,939,728 shares of the retailer's stock worth $697,029,000 after buying an additional 7,860,306 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 30.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 33,292,749 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,922,770,000 after buying an additional 7,706,201 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 28,684.8% during the 1st quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 4,229,354 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $371,295,000 after buying an additional 4,214,661 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,641,936 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,943,049,000 after buying an additional 3,550,037 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 28,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total transaction of $2,716,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 1,064,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $103,252,135. The trade was a 2.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,148 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 4,451,199 shares in the company, valued at approximately $429,896,799.42. The trade was a 0.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 144,334 shares of company stock worth $13,913,350. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $99.96 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $797.72 billion, a PE ratio of 42.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.80 and a beta of 0.66. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $72.52 and a one year high of $105.30. 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's fifty day moving average price is $97.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $95.58.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on WMT shares. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 5th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $109.29.

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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