Stevens Capital Management LP Acquires 1,745 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Stevens Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 10.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,894 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,745 shares during the period. Stevens Capital Management LP’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,617,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the third quarter valued at $43,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 17,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.42, for a total transaction of $1,661,792.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 348,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,891,867.94. The trade was a 4.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total transaction of $2,689,601.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,785,702 shares in the company, valued at $349,609,579.70. The trade was a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 189,777 shares of company stock valued at $18,001,116. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $85.94 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $58.56 and a 12 month high of $105.30. The firm has a market cap of $688.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.66, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $95.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $89.04.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion for 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%. On average, analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Walmart from $99.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.17.

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.