AXQ Capital LP Makes New $811,000 Investment in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

AXQ Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 8,981 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $811,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Umpqua Bank boosted its holdings in Walmart by 14.4% in the fourth quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 9,133 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $829,000 after acquiring an additional 1,152 shares in the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Walmart by 128.7% in the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,597 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,500,000 after purchasing an additional 9,340 shares in the last quarter. Intellus Advisors LLC bought a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $352,000. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in Walmart by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,626,563 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $146,960,000 after acquiring an additional 21,275 shares during the period. Finally, Vestor Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 53.7% during the 4th quarter. Vestor Capital LLC now owns 93,719 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,468,000 after purchasing an additional 32,737 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $85.94 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $58.56 and a 1 year high of $105.30. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $95.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $88.95. The firm has a market cap of $688.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.66, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) 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 the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total value of $1,215,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 566,794 shares in the company, valued at $52,485,124.40. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total transaction of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,419,362.80. This trade represents a 12.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 189,777 shares of company stock valued at $18,001,116. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Walmart from $99.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.17.

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.