Blue Capital Inc. Makes New Investment in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Blue Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 41,135 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $3,717,000. Walmart comprises about 2.6% of Blue Capital Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at about $5,737,355,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,306,627,000. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 37.1% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 25,339,448 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,289,419,000 after acquiring an additional 6,860,189 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 32,020,800 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,893,079,000 after purchasing an additional 3,927,173 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Walmart by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,641,936 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,943,049,000 after purchasing an additional 3,550,037 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the company’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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at $44,049,852.03. This represents a 0.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total value of $343,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 888,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,350,158.55. The trade was a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 131,657 shares of company stock valued at $12,230,529 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock opened at $98.73 on Monday. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $59.39 and a 12-month high of $105.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The company has a market capitalization of $789.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.70. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $90.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $91.47.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion for 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, research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.95%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on WMT shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. KeyCorp increased their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $102.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.58.

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.