Madison Investment Advisors LLC Acquires New Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Madison Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,676 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $242,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brophy Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,072,000. Candriam S.C.A. raised its position in Walmart by 209.7% during the 4th quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $79,960,000 after buying an additional 599,257 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire raised its position in Walmart by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,332,000 after buying an additional 5,786 shares during the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Walmart by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 203,150 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,355,000 after buying an additional 9,292 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Iowa State Bank raised its position in Walmart by 213.8% during the 4th quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 26,807 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,422,000 after buying an additional 18,263 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total value of $2,689,601.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,785,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $349,609,579.70. The trade was a 0.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total value of $166,384.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,049,852.03. This represents a 0.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 189,777 shares of company stock worth $18,001,116. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Tigress Financial raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “positive” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $99.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.17.

Walmart Stock Up 0.1 %

NYSE WMT opened at $85.94 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $58.56 and a 52 week high of $105.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $95.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $89.04. The firm has a market cap of $688.93 billion, a PE ratio of 35.66, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.09%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.00%.

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.