Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Sold by Marotta Asset Management

Marotta Asset Management lessened its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 8.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,371 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 220 shares during the period. Marotta Asset Management’s holdings in Walmart were worth $213,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. First International Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. First International Bank & Trust now owns 13,681 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,236,000 after acquiring an additional 2,159 shares during the last quarter. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC raised its stake in Walmart by 24.7% in the 4th quarter. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC now owns 24,260 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,203,000 after purchasing an additional 4,806 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. lifted its holdings in Walmart by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. now owns 127,329 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $11,504,000 after purchasing an additional 3,741 shares in the last quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 23,611 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,133,000 after purchasing an additional 856 shares during the last quarter. Finally, InvesTrust purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $1,240,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 566,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,485,124.40. This represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,065 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.69, for a total transaction of $166,624.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 457,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,915,110.17. This represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 140,412 shares of company stock worth $12,478,116. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE:WMT traded up $0.91 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $92.71. 3,843,787 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,254,057. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $744.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.05, a P/E/G ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.55. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $53.39 and a 52 week high of $96.18. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $80.29.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its 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. The company had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.51 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the subject of several research reports. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $83.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Walmart to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Barclays lifted their target price on Walmart from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America increased their price target on Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $94.08.

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.