Legal & General Group Plc Raises Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 36,282,740 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 644,353 shares during the period. Walmart accounts for about 0.5% of Legal & General Group Plc’s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.45% of Walmart worth $2,456,704,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Able Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $48,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 138.3% in the 2nd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 429 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 25,578 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.58, for a total transaction of $1,728,561.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 390,165 shares in the company, valued at $26,367,350.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,063 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.76, for a total value of $166,607.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 459,558 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,113,904.08. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 25,578 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.58, for a total value of $1,728,561.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 390,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,367,350.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,317,999 shares of company stock worth $956,341,379 in the last 90 days. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Melius Research began coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday. They set a “buy” rating and a $95.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Roth Mkm increased their target price on Walmart from $71.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Walmart from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $80.19.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $79.91 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $74.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $67.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $642.34 billion, a PE ratio of 34.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.51. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $49.85 and a 12 month high of $81.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $169.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $168.56 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 21.72%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.61 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 EPS for the current fiscal 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.