Vestcor Inc Trims Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Vestcor Inc reduced its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 452,774 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 16,178 shares during the period. Walmart makes up 1.4% of Vestcor Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Walmart were worth $40,908,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brophy Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Walmart during the third quarter worth about $2,072,000. Candriam S.C.A. lifted its holdings in Walmart by 209.7% during the fourth quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $79,960,000 after acquiring an additional 599,257 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire lifted its holdings in Walmart by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,332,000 after acquiring an additional 5,786 shares in the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 9,292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Iowa State Bank lifted its holdings in Walmart by 213.8% during the fourth quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 26,807 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,422,000 after acquiring an additional 18,263 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $85.07 on Thursday. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $58.56 and a 12-month high of $105.30. The stock has a market cap of $683.43 billion, a PE ratio of 35.30, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a 50 day moving average of $95.96 and a 200-day moving average of $88.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.83 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on WMT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Citigroup reissued a “positive” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.20.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 17,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.42, for a total value of $1,661,792.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 348,357 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,891,867.94. The trade was a 4.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total value of $2,689,601.40. Following the completion of 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 trade represents a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 185,777 shares of company stock worth $17,657,316. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

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.