Penbrook Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Penbrook Management LLC decreased its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 17.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,821 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 800 shares during the quarter. Penbrook Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $345,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $690,000. Baron Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,392 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $758,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Strategic Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Planning Group LLC now owns 175,010 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $15,812,000 after acquiring an additional 2,366 shares in the last quarter. Baring Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $235,000. Finally, Highland Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart by 274.3% in the fourth quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 106,745 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $9,644,000 after acquiring an additional 78,226 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of WMT stock opened at $97.97 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $787.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.20, a P/E/G ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.55. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $55.04 and a 12-month high of $99.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $92.91 and its 200 day moving average is $82.90.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.96, for a total value of $1,220,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 568,626 shares in the company, valued at $52,859,472.96. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.62, for a total value of $2,697,464.88. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,766,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $348,852,396.42. This represents a 0.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 137,177 shares of company stock worth $12,649,328. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Walmart from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Walmart from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Walmart from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.11.

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.