Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Purchased by Valley Brook Capital Group Inc.

Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. grew its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,816 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 315 shares during the period. Walmart comprises approximately 1.1% of Valley Brook Capital Group Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,232,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Kepos Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Walmart to $66.67 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on Walmart to $67.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $68.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “hold” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Walmart from $54.33 to $58.67 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 19th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.75.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.08, for a total transaction of $177,240.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 521,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,816,896.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Walmart news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.93, for a total value of $1,687,250.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,076,892 shares in the company, valued at $236,187,943.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.08, for a total value of $177,240.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 521,613 shares in the company, valued at $30,816,896.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 29,019,140 shares of company stock worth $1,696,045,631 in the last three months. 46.51% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT stock traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $59.82. The company had a trading volume of 14,207,397 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,769,110. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $60.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $482.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.26, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $48.34 and a one year high of $61.65.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.05. Walmart had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 21.08%. The firm had revenue of $173.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $170.85 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.57 EPS. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.36 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a $0.2075 dividend. This represents a $0.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.38%.

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.