Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 9.5% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 15,997 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,688 shares during the quarter. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,404,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Tallon Kerry Patrick purchased a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $252,000. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC now owns 69,542 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,283,000 after acquiring an additional 992 shares during the period. Eagle Capital Management LLC raised its position in Walmart by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 3,861 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Walmart by 28.8% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,868,000 after purchasing an additional 21,939 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $10,645,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,760 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.82, for a total value of $166,883.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 520,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,332,475.50. This represents a 0.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total transaction of $217,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 630,518 shares in the company, valued at $62,421,282. This represents a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 137,534 shares of company stock valued at $12,833,664. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Walmart from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $117.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, May 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.50.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT opened at $94.20 on Monday. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $66.41 and a 1-year high of $105.30. The stock has a market cap of $751.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.09, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $95.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $94.09. 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 earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The company had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors 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 yield of 0.95%. Walmart’s payout ratio is 40.17%.

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.