Private Trust Co. NA Lowers Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Private Trust Co. NA lowered its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 51,503 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,546 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA’s holdings in Walmart were worth $4,653,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. boosted its stake in Walmart by 77.3% during the third quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $96.88 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $58.20 and a 1 year high of $105.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $778.23 billion, a PE ratio of 40.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.55. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $95.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $87.23. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. DZ Bank raised Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Walmart from $113.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 target price (up previously from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.07.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction of $166,384.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 423,597 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $44,049,852.03. The trade was a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 17,600 shares of the company’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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 348,357 shares in the company, valued at $32,891,867.94. The trade was a 4.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 146,528 shares of company stock valued at $13,849,185. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart 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.