Nicola Wealth Management LTD. Buys 141,800 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Nicola Wealth Management LTD. lifted its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 102.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 280,200 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 141,800 shares during the period. Walmart makes up approximately 1.9% of Nicola Wealth Management LTD.’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Nicola Wealth Management LTD.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $16,860,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Partnership Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Able Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Tidemark LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WMT. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Walmart from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $69.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. HSBC upped their price target on Walmart from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Walmart from $64.33 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group increased their price target on Walmart from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.09.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT traded down $0.37 during trading on Monday, hitting $70.38. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 12,657,814 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,393,406. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $66.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $61.26. The firm has a market cap of $566.10 billion, a PE ratio of 30.20, a P/E/G ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $49.85 and a one year high of $71.33.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $161.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $159.57 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.88% and a return on equity of 21.57%. The business’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,398 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total value of $166,661.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 463,871 shares in the company, valued at $32,239,034.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.39, for a total transaction of $1,991,790.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,960,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $270,851,892.78. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,398 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total value of $166,661.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 463,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,239,034.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 14,527,738 shares of company stock worth $953,190,060 in the last three months. Corporate 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.