GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. Invests $226,000 in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. bought a new position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 2,500 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $226,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 422,736,888 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $38,194,278,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,683 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 90,635,238 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,167,186,000 after acquiring an additional 3,017,829 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth about $5,737,355,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 48,793,045 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,408,452,000 after acquiring an additional 1,133,201 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 42,015,818 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,796,129,000 after purchasing an additional 514,036 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on WMT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Mizuho assumed coverage on Walmart in a report on Friday, April 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $115.00 price objective (up from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Three 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.58.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE WMT opened at $93.97 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market cap of $753.38 billion, a PE ratio of 38.99, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $58.56 and a fifty-two week high of $105.30. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $92.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $90.09.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. On average, equities analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. Walmart’s payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 568,626 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,859,472.96. 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 is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total value of $166,384.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at $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. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 177,022 shares of company stock valued at $16,618,422. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

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.