Violich Capital Management Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Violich Capital Management Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 12,625 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 550 shares during the period. Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,141,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brophy Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth about $2,072,000. Bank of New Hampshire lifted its stake in Walmart by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,332,000 after acquiring an additional 5,786 shares during the last quarter. Iowa State Bank grew its holdings in Walmart by 213.8% during the 4th quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 26,807 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,422,000 after acquiring an additional 18,263 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 47,659,844 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,848,533,000 after purchasing an additional 2,107,197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at $541,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE WMT opened at $102.45 on Wednesday. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $55.85 and a 52-week high of $103.11. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $94.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $822.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.04, a P/E/G ratio of 4.25 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.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The business had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays raised their target price on Walmart from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $98.08.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,956,404.35. This trade represents a 0.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total transaction of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares in the company, valued at $25,419,362.80. This represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 175,177 shares of company stock valued at $16,403,728. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

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.