Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Bought by Nixon Peabody Trust Co.

Nixon Peabody Trust Co. lifted its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 442.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 64,826 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 52,883 shares during the period. Nixon Peabody Trust Co.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $10,220,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. now owns 7,816 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,232,000 after buying an additional 315 shares during the period. Motco raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Motco now owns 58,301 shares of the retailer's stock worth $9,191,000 after purchasing an additional 726 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 24.6% during the 4th quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 78,345 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $12,351,000 after buying an additional 15,448 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,340,000. Finally, Capital Wealth Planning LLC raised its position in Walmart by 32.5% during the third quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 2,117,190 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $338,602,000 after acquiring an additional 518,896 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of Walmart stock traded up $0.54 during trading on Friday, reaching $65.38. The company's stock had a trading volume of 11,658,584 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,698,928. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $48.34 and a one year high of $65.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $60.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $56.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $526.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.77 and a beta of 0.49.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.08. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 2.88%. The firm had revenue of $161.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $159.57 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a $0.2075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on WMT shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Walmart from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Walmart to $67.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 26th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $62.00 to $63.33 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $68.01.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.78, for a total transaction of $117,560.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 656,395,261 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $38,582,913,441.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.78, for a total transaction of $117,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 656,395,261 shares of the company's stock, valued at $38,582,913,441.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director S Robson Walton sold 3,540,250 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.55, for a total value of $228,523,137.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 648,504,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,860,933,910.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 8,221,033 shares of company stock valued at $518,194,888 over the last three months. 46.51% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.

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