Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 2,032,693 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. reduced its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 73.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 736,181 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,032,693 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $64,629,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. World Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of Walmart by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 271,515 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $24,532,000 after purchasing an additional 19,233 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. grew its stake in Walmart by 209.7% in the 4th quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $79,960,000 after buying an additional 599,257 shares during the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 203,150 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,355,000 after acquiring an additional 9,292 shares during the period. Cushing Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $1,124,000. Finally, Campbell Wealth Management bought a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at about $359,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 28,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total value of $2,716,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,064,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $103,252,135. The trade was a 2.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total value of $2,493,888.12. Following the sale, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 137,534 shares of company stock worth $12,833,664 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock opened at $95.70 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $765.70 billion, a PE ratio of 39.71, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.90 and a 1 year high of $105.30. The company’s 50-day moving average is $95.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $94.01.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $115.00 price target (up from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Raymond James lowered their price objective on shares of Walmart from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $106.50.

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.