Diversify Advisory Services LLC Acquires 1,152 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 6.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 20,310 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 1,152 shares during the quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,889,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Walmart by 77.3% during the third quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Hoese & Co LLP bought a new stake in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. DZ Bank downgraded shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $91.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Walmart from $75.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic upgraded Walmart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $94.49.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 460,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total value of $1,215,375.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 566,794 shares in the company, valued at $52,485,124.40. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 140,177 shares of company stock worth $12,478,149 over the last three months. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Up 0.8 %

WMT stock opened at $92.02 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $739.19 billion, a PE ratio of 37.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $53.44 and a 52 week high of $96.18. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $91.15 and a 200 day moving average of $81.46.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.51 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

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.