Alyeska Investment Group L.P. Sells 2,521,034 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lowered its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 91.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 244,300 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 2,521,034 shares during the quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $22,073,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Alteri Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $7,433,000. AmeriServ Wealth Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at about $896,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 20.3% in the fourth quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 556,132 shares of the retailer's stock worth $50,291,000 after purchasing an additional 93,951 shares during the period. Apex Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,358,000. Finally, Aristotle Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $218,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of WMT stock traded up $0.21 on Wednesday, hitting $98.76. The stock had a trading volume of 11,301,127 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,801,466. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $59.44 and a 52-week high of $105.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $790.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.98, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.70. The stock's 50 day moving average is $90.62 and its 200-day moving average is $91.65.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. Walmart's payout ratio is 39.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WMT. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $102.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $103.94.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other Walmart news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.95, for a total value of $2,823,571.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,558,247 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $344,972,046.65. This represents a 0.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.37, for a total transaction of $214,214.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 632,718 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $61,607,751.66. This represents a 0.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 133,857 shares of company stock valued at $12,444,743. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart 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.