Wolff Wiese Magana LLC Lowers Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Wolff Wiese Magana LLC cut its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 23.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,445 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 7,742 shares during the period. Walmart comprises about 1.5% of Wolff Wiese Magana LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $2,234,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 1,007.7% during the fourth quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the period. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the first quarter worth about $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total value of $374,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,096,455 shares in the company, valued at $102,518,542.50. This represents a 0.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total value of $2,493,888.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now 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 three months, insiders have sold 135,294 shares of company stock valued at $12,656,659. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $103.00 price objective (up from $102.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, June 9th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $106.50.

Walmart Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of WMT stock opened at $96.16 on Monday. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $66.55 and a fifty-two week high of $105.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $767.41 billion, a PE ratio of 41.10, a P/E/G ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.78. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $96.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $94.14.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.60 EPS. Walmart's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were given 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%.

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.

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