Pollock Investment Advisors LLC Takes Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Pollock Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 9,901 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $895,000. Walmart comprises 0.7% of Pollock Investment Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. one8zero8 LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,083,000. Choate Investment Advisors grew its position in Walmart by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 301,477 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $27,250,000 after buying an additional 22,961 shares during the period. Diversified Enterprises LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Enterprises LLC now owns 13,444 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,215,000 after buying an additional 1,234 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 1,943,247 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $175,572,000 after acquiring an additional 75,418 shares during the period. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 56,956 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,146,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total value of $166,384.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total transaction of $3,754,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 257,281 shares in the company, valued at $25,419,362.80. This represents a 12.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 185,777 shares of company stock valued at $17,657,316. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of WMT opened at $85.29 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $95.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $88.71. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $58.56 and a 12-month high of $105.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market cap of $685.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.10%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on WMT shares. Truist Financial upped their price target on Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Walmart from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, February 24th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock 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 given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $103.20.

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.