Chung Wu Investment Group LLC Buys Shares of 4,490 Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Chung Wu Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 4,490 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $406,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Swedbank AB grew its stake in Walmart by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,345,293 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $431,632,000 after acquiring an additional 18,644 shares in the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 10.5% during the third quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 34,001 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,746,000 after purchasing an additional 3,231 shares during the period. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC grew its position in Walmart by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC now owns 12,257 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $990,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart by 14.6% during the third quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 19,106 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,543,000 after purchasing an additional 2,441 shares in the last quarter. Finally, One Plus One Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth approximately $328,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Trading Up 1.1 %

Walmart stock opened at $96.00 on Thursday. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $58.56 and a 12 month high of $105.30. The stock has a market cap of $771.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $96.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $88.09. 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 (NYSE:WMT) last posted 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. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.83 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders 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 0.98%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,785,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $349,609,579.70. This trade represents a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 185,777 shares of company stock worth $17,657,316. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on WMT shares. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective (up previously from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. DZ Bank raised Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.07.

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.