Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Grows Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 182.4% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 101,314 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 65,443 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $6,096,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Northwest Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 199.3% during the first quarter. Northwest Capital Management Inc now owns 440 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Able Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $67.71 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $64.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.35. The company has a market cap of $544.63 billion, a PE ratio of 28.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.52. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $49.85 and a fifty-two week high of $69.04.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.08. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 2.88%. The business had revenue of $161.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $159.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.49 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WMT. Roth Mkm upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Walmart from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Walmart from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Walmart from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.97.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.39, for a total transaction of $1,991,790.36. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,960,402 shares in the company, valued at $270,851,892.78. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 1,132,123 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.02, for a total transaction of $73,610,637.46. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 647,371,888 shares in the company, valued at $42,092,120,157.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.39, for a total value of $1,991,790.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,960,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $270,851,892.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 14,502,762 shares of company stock valued at $951,475,618. 45.58% of the stock is currently 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.