Pacific Point Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Pacific Point Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 14,458 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,306,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. World Investment Advisors increased its position in Walmart by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 271,515 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $24,532,000 after buying an additional 19,233 shares in the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. increased its position in Walmart by 209.7% in the fourth quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $79,960,000 after buying an additional 599,257 shares in the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 203,150 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,355,000 after purchasing an additional 9,292 shares in the last quarter. Cushing Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $1,124,000. Finally, Campbell Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $359,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on WMT shares. Mizuho started coverage on Walmart in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 target price for the company. Guggenheim reiterated 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 restated an “outperform” rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, May 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target (up from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $104.94.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $95.95 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $64.16 and a 1 year 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 stock’s 50 day moving average price is $92.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $92.82. The firm has a market cap of $767.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.81, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.70.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The company had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.60 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a $0.235 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.17%.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.15, for a total transaction of $1,261,968.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 460,672 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,293,612.80. The trade was a 2.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,558,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $344,972,046.65. This trade represents a 0.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 148,435 shares of company stock worth $13,886,290. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

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.