Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Position Lowered by Cornerstone Advisors LLC

Cornerstone Advisors LLC decreased its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 360,500 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 12,300 shares during the period. Walmart comprises about 1.3% of Cornerstone Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Cornerstone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $32,571,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of WMT. Swedbank AB lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 0.4% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,345,293 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $431,632,000 after purchasing an additional 18,644 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 14.9% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,235,504 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $503,517,000 after acquiring an additional 809,352 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 8.3% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 132,180 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $10,674,000 after acquiring an additional 10,090 shares during the period. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP raised its stake in Walmart by 14.7% during the third quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 23,757 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,918,000 after acquiring an additional 3,045 shares during the period. Finally, Tyler Stone Wealth Management raised its stake in Walmart by 271.7% during the third quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 5,613 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $453,000 after acquiring an additional 4,103 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $87.57 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $703.46 billion, a PE ratio of 36.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $58.56 and a 12 month high of $105.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $88.53.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on WMT. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 price target (up previously from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $103.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total transaction of $1,215,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 566,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,485,124.40. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total transaction of $2,689,601.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,785,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $349,609,579.70. This represents a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 185,777 shares of company stock worth $17,657,316. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company 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.