Darden Wealth Group Inc Boosts Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Darden Wealth Group Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 15.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,535 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 750 shares during the quarter. Darden Wealth Group Inc’s holdings in Walmart were worth $500,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 1,007.7% in the fourth quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the period. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Down 4.8 %

Shares of WMT opened at $83.09 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $94.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $89.59. The company has a market cap of $666.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.48, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. 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 twelve month low of $58.56 and a twelve month high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. As a group, analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.66, for a total transaction of $195,052.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 398,024 shares in the company, valued at $35,288,807.84. This trade represents a 0.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.96, for a total transaction of $1,220,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 568,626 shares in the company, valued at $52,859,472.96. This represents a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 178,852 shares of company stock worth $16,785,080 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.17.

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.