Twin Capital Management Inc. Has $6.79 Million Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Twin Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 2.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 75,170 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 1,523 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for about 0.7% of Twin Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Twin Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $6,792,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $5,737,355,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth about $2,306,627,000. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 37.1% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 25,339,448 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,289,419,000 after buying an additional 6,860,189 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Walmart by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 32,020,800 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,893,079,000 after acquiring an additional 3,927,173 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 90,635,238 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,167,186,000 after purchasing an additional 3,017,829 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on WMT. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Erste Group Bank downgraded Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, February 24th. DZ Bank raised shares of Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.17.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.96, for a total value of $1,220,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 568,626 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,859,472.96. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction of $166,384.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,049,852.03. The trade was a 0.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 178,852 shares of company stock valued at $16,785,080 in the last quarter. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walmart Trading Down 4.8 %

NYSE WMT opened at $83.09 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $94.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $89.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $666.12 billion, a PE ratio of 34.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $58.56 and a 12 month high of $105.30.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

Walmart 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.