HTLF Bank Sells 3,032 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

HTLF Bank lowered its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 101,567 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 3,032 shares during the period. Walmart comprises about 1.0% of HTLF Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. HTLF Bank’s holdings in Walmart were worth $9,177,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brophy Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Walmart in the third quarter worth $2,072,000. Bank of New Hampshire lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 13.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,332,000 after acquiring an additional 5,786 shares during the last quarter. Iowa State Bank boosted its holdings in Walmart by 213.8% during the 4th quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 26,807 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,422,000 after acquiring an additional 18,263 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in Walmart by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 47,659,844 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,848,533,000 after acquiring an additional 2,107,197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $541,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $102.77 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $825.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.18, a PEG ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $55.85 and a 1 year high of $103.11. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $94.07 and its 200 day moving average is $84.36.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The firm had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.62, for a total transaction 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 trade represents a 0.77 % decrease in their position. The sale 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 business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total transaction of $3,754,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,419,362.80. The trade was a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 175,177 shares of company stock valued at $16,403,728. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. DZ Bank cut Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $91.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $96.95.

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.