Wealthfront Advisers LLC Acquires 22,594 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Wealthfront Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 4.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 515,381 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 22,594 shares during the quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $45,245,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Whelan Financial lifted its holdings in Walmart by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 4,339 shares of the retailer's stock worth $392,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings 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 buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Scott & Selber Inc. lifted 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 buying an additional 105 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 1.4% in the first quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,794 shares of the retailer's stock worth $684,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, Planning Center Inc. lifted its holdings in Walmart by 1.8% in the first quarter. Planning Center Inc. now owns 6,018 shares of the retailer's stock worth $528,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.44, for a total transaction of $216,568.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 628,318 shares in the company, valued at $61,851,623.92. This represents a 0.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,760 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.77, for a total value of $166,795.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 650,977 shares of the company's stock, valued at $61,693,090.29. This trade represents a 0.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 140,951 shares of company stock worth $13,543,436. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Walmart Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of Walmart stock traded down $0.36 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $95.42. The stock had a trading volume of 10,436,778 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,119,129. The firm has a market capitalization of $761.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.78, a P/E/G ratio of 4.61 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $66.67 and a 1 year high of $105.30. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $97.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.55.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.76% and a net margin of 2.75%. The firm had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.60 EPS. Walmart's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued 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 (DPR) is 40.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on WMT shares. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Truist Financial raised 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 reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $103.00 price target (up previously from $102.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Two 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 company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $106.67.

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.