Financial Security Advisor Inc. Cuts Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Financial Security Advisor Inc. decreased its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 51,672 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,085 shares during the period. Walmart comprises 1.2% of Financial Security Advisor Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Financial Security Advisor Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $4,679,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,345,293 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $431,632,000 after buying an additional 18,644 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 11.5% in the third quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC now owns 5,390 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $435,000 after buying an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. GSB Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 27.9% during the third quarter. GSB Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,416 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $357,000 after acquiring an additional 963 shares during the period. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Walmart in the third quarter worth $48,000. Finally, ADE LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the third quarter valued at $206,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 target price (up from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.07.

Walmart Stock Up 0.7 %

WMT stock opened at $96.88 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $95.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $87.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $778.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.20, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.55. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $58.20 and a one year high of $105.30.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction of $166,384.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total value of $2,689,601.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,785,702 shares in the company, valued at $349,609,579.70. This trade represents a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 146,528 shares of company stock worth $13,849,185 in the last three months. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

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.