CoreFirst Bank & Trust Takes $2.37 Million Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 26,206 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,368,000. Walmart comprises 1.4% of CoreFirst Bank & Trust’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Grantvest Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $249,000. Haverford Trust Co lifted its position in Walmart by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 81,761 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,387,000 after purchasing an additional 1,285 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 17.6% in the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 4,773,505 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $431,286,000 after buying an additional 714,028 shares during the period. Interchange Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Interchange Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,079 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $640,000 after buying an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 21.3% during the 4th quarter. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,312 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $299,000 after acquiring an additional 582 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total value of $343,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $76,350,158.55. The trade was a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total value of $2,689,601.40. Following 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 189,777 shares of company stock valued at $18,001,116. 45.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $85.94 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $95.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $89.12. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $58.56 and a twelve month high of $105.30. The company has a market cap of $688.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on WMT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price 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. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.17.

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.