Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. Purchases 3,079 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 200.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,617 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 3,079 shares during the quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $277,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Partnership Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Able Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Tidemark LLC acquired a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 1,132,123 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.02, for a total value of $73,610,637.46. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 647,371,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $42,092,120,157.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.03, for a total value of $1,748,313.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,018,650 shares in the company, valued at approximately $241,239,559.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 1,132,123 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now owns 647,371,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,092,120,157.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,525,340 shares of company stock valued at $953,023,399 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $70.40 on Thursday. 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 stock has a fifty day moving average of $65.56 and a 200 day moving average of $60.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $566.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.09, a PEG ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.50. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $49.85 and a 52 week high of $70.44.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.08. Walmart had a net margin of 2.88% and a return on equity of 21.57%. The company had revenue of $161.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $159.57 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WMT. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $67.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on Walmart from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Walmart from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Walmart from $64.33 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $81.00 price objective on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.83.

About Walmart

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.