Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Sold by Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc.

Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 79,595 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,054 shares during the period. Walmart accounts for approximately 3.7% of Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $7,191,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. raised its holdings in Walmart by 77.3% during the third quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Walmart from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Roth Mkm upped their price target on Walmart from $81.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $98.56.

Walmart Trading Up 1.1 %

Walmart stock opened at $103.62 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $94.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $55.85 and a 12 month high of $103.90. The stock has a market cap of $832.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.53, a P/E/G ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.55.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The business had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.51 EPS. Walmart’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 257,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,419,362.80. This represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 175,177 shares of company stock worth $16,403,728. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart 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.