Kentucky Retirement Systems Trims Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Kentucky Retirement Systems reduced its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 302,593 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 19,306 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for 0.7% of Kentucky Retirement Systems’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Walmart were worth $24,434,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 199.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 411,745,334 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $24,774,717,000 after acquiring an additional 274,229,968 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Walmart by 181.0% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 56,861,234 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,421,342,000 after purchasing an additional 36,625,314 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its holdings in Walmart by 284.0% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 11,122,273 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $669,227,000 after purchasing an additional 8,225,552 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 8,814.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 6,963,218 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $562,280,000 after purchasing an additional 6,885,106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BlueSpruce Investments LP grew its holdings in Walmart by 186.6% in the first quarter. BlueSpruce Investments LP now owns 10,332,775 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $621,723,000 after purchasing an additional 6,727,200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.12, for a total value of $246,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 378,165 shares in the company, valued at $31,054,909.80. This trade represents a 0.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.64, for a total value of $2,348,559.36. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,873,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $312,322,993.92. The trade was a 0.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,337,337 shares of company stock valued at $958,823,647 in the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on WMT. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 target price for the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Truist Financial raised Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Walmart from $73.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $85.18.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $84.27 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The business has a 50 day moving average of $81.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.78. The company has a market cap of $677.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.81, a PEG ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 0.51. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $49.85 and a 52 week high of $85.79.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $169.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $168.56 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 2.34%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.61 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 EPS for the current year.

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.