WASHINGTON TRUST Co Decreases Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

WASHINGTON TRUST Co lowered its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 1.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 291,459 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 3,952 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for 1.0% of WASHINGTON TRUST Co's investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. WASHINGTON TRUST Co's holdings in Walmart were worth $25,587,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. World Investment Advisors boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 271,515 shares of the retailer's stock worth $24,532,000 after purchasing an additional 19,233 shares in the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 209.7% in the fourth quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $79,960,000 after purchasing an additional 599,257 shares during the period. Cushing Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $1,124,000. GWN Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $4,658,000. Finally, Full Sail Capital LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Full Sail Capital LLC now owns 8,702 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $786,000 after buying an additional 541 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Walmart Trading Up 0.5%

WMT stock traded up $0.47 on Tuesday, hitting $98.25. 15,633,030 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,027,670. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $784.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 0.69. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $66.67 and a twelve month high of $105.30. The business's fifty day moving average is $96.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $94.26.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.60 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $117.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Two equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $106.50.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total transaction of $217,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 630,518 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,421,282. The trade was a 0.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.85, for a total transaction of $1,258,031.25. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 945,434 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $90,619,848.90. This trade represents a 1.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 140,511 shares of company stock valued at $13,493,751. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.