Forsta AP Fonden Increases Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Forsta AP Fonden raised its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 230.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,086,800 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 758,300 shares during the period. Walmart comprises approximately 0.6% of Forsta AP Fonden’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in Walmart were worth $65,393,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Northwest Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 199.3% in the first quarter. Northwest Capital Management Inc now owns 440 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares during the period. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Able Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Bank of America boosted their price target on Walmart from $67.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.82, for a total value of $1,944,600.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 144,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,386,389.74. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.08, for a total transaction of $177,240.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 521,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,816,896.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.82, for a total transaction of $1,944,600.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 144,807 shares in the company, valued at $9,386,389.74. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 14,525,340 shares of company stock valued at $953,023,399. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walmart Price Performance

NYSE WMT opened at $69.30 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $65.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $60.63. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $49.85 and a 1 year high of $70.45. The company has a market cap of $557.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.63, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.50.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 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 analyst estimates of $159.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

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.