Mechanics Bank Trust Department Has $7.48 Million Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department trimmed its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 82,812 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,131 shares during the period. Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings in Walmart were worth $7,482,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. increased its stake in Walmart by 77.3% in the third quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Hoese & Co LLP acquired a new position in Walmart in the third quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in Walmart during the third quarter worth about $36,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WMT shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Guggenheim upped their price target on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. StockNews.com cut Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $94.49.

Walmart Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE WMT opened at $92.02 on Tuesday. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $53.44 and a twelve month high of $96.18. The stock has a market cap of $739.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.76, a P/E/G ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company’s fifty day moving average is $91.15 and its 200-day moving average is $81.46.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The company’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.51 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 460,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total transaction of $1,215,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 566,794 shares in the company, valued at $52,485,124.40. This represents a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 140,177 shares of company stock valued at $12,478,149. 45.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.