AQR Capital Management LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 22.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,334,041 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 995,080 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for 0.6% of AQR Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. AQR Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $481,931,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,937 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $538,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC now owns 3,431 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $310,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $924,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 15,685 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,417,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van Strum & Towne Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Van Strum & Towne Inc. now owns 6,849 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $619,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on WMT. UBS Group decreased their target price on Walmart from $112.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.58.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT opened at $95.16 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $762.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.49, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $58.58 and a 1-year high of $105.30. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $180.55 billion during 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%. Equities analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction of $166,384.00. Following the completion of 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,419,362.80. This represents a 12.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 169,657 shares of company stock valued at $15,984,929. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.