Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Stock Position Lowered by Monarch Capital Management Inc.

Monarch Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 4.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 139,046 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 6,628 shares during the period. Walmart comprises 3.4% of Monarch Capital Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Monarch Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $12,234,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 1,007.7% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 40.0% in the fourth quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 525 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock traded down $1.50 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $94.30. The stock had a trading volume of 9,446,854 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,837,010. The company has a market capitalization of $754.48 billion, a PE ratio of 39.13, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $65.90 and a 52-week high of $105.30. The firm's fifty day moving average is $95.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $94.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The company had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.60 EPS. Walmart's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total value of $217,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 630,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $62,421,282. This represents a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total transaction of $2,493,888.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,972,517 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $340,166,630.71. This represents a 0.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 137,534 shares of company stock worth $12,833,664. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WMT. Mizuho upped their price objective on Walmart from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday. Finally, Erste Group Bank cut Walmart from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Two investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $106.50.

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.