Empowered Funds LLC Trims Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Empowered Funds LLC trimmed its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 159,125 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,756 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $14,377,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Montis Financial LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 24.8% in the 3rd quarter. Montis Financial LLC now owns 6,036 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $487,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200 shares during the period. Retirement Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 86.4% in the 3rd quarter. Retirement Planning Group LLC now owns 35,697 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,883,000 after purchasing an additional 16,549 shares during the period. Carnegie Investment Counsel boosted its stake in Walmart by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 214,159 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $17,293,000 after purchasing an additional 1,137 shares during the period. Compton Wealth Advisory Group LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Compton Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 31,779 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,566,000 after purchasing an additional 1,081 shares during the period. Finally, FOCUS Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $213,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $166,658.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares in the company, valued at $41,956,404.35. The trade was a 0.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz acquired 5,446 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $91.81 per share, with a total value of $499,997.26. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 7,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $716,577.05. The trade was a 230.86 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 175,177 shares of company stock valued at $16,403,728. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $101.17 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $55.85 and a 1 year high of $103.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $812.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.52, a P/E/G ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.55. The business’s 50-day moving average is $94.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $84.26.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The business had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.51 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on WMT shares. StockNews.com downgraded Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.01.

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.