Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Bought by Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky boosted its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 40.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 587,712 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 169,523 shares during the quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky's holdings in Walmart were worth $51,595,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Horizon Financial Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 1,007.7% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 98.2% in the 1st quarter. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. now owns 337 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. Lipe & Dalton increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 95.2% in the 1st quarter. Lipe & Dalton now owns 410 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE:WMT opened at $95.01 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $758.22 billion, a PE ratio of 40.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.57 and a beta of 0.68. The business's fifty day moving average price is $96.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $94.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.22. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $66.67 and a 12 month high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last released 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. Walmart had a net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 21.76%. The company had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.60 earnings per share. Walmart's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.95%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Raymond James Financial cut 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. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Walmart from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $106.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $90,619,848.90. This represents a 1.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,744 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.60, for a total transaction of $166,726.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 649,233 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $62,066,674.80. The trade was a 0.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 142,695 shares of company stock valued at $13,710,162. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

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.

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