Handelsbanken Fonder AB Grows Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 6.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,566,463 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 94,008 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Walmart were worth $126,492,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WMT. AHL Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Walmart by 192.1% during the first quarter. AHL Investment Management Inc. now owns 24,000 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,444,000 after buying an additional 15,785 shares during the period. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 38.9% in the 4th quarter. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,501 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $237,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the last quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 1st quarter worth about $270,000. Commerce Bank grew its holdings in Walmart by 189.4% during the 1st quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 917,625 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $55,213,000 after purchasing an additional 600,521 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its position in Walmart by 290.7% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 270,065 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $16,250,000 after purchasing an additional 200,947 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on WMT shares. Bank of America boosted their target price on Walmart from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Walmart from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Barclays lifted their target price on Walmart from $66.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. HSBC upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $81.62.

Walmart Stock Up 0.6 %

WMT stock traded up $0.51 on Friday, hitting $80.94. 11,591,388 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,396,678. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $75.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $68.22. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $49.85 and a 12-month high of $81.60. The stock has a market cap of $650.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $169.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $168.56 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 21.72%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.61 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,398 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total value of $166,661.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 463,871 shares in the company, valued at $32,239,034.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.97, for a total value of $242,910.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 381,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,862,930.05. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,398 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total transaction of $166,661.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 463,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,239,034.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,337,670 shares of company stock worth $958,267,937. 45.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.