Miracle Mile Advisors LLC Purchases 3,120 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Miracle Mile Advisors LLC grew its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.6% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 201,507 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 3,120 shares during the period. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $17,690,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tallon Kerry Patrick bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth about $252,000. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC now owns 69,542 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,283,000 after buying an additional 992 shares during the period. Eagle Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 3,861 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $349,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 28.8% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,868,000 after buying an additional 21,939 shares during the period. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth about $10,645,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $97.46 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $93.88. The stock has a market cap of $779.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.44, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.90 and a 1 year 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.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $164.53 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were given a $0.235 dividend. This represents a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total value of $2,493,888.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,972,517 shares in the company, valued at approximately $340,166,630.71. This represents a 0.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 137,534 shares of company stock worth $12,833,664. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on WMT shares. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Mizuho started coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, April 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Raymond James cut their price objective on shares of Walmart from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Two research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $105.16.

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.