Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV Has $491,000 Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV reduced its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 55.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,438 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 6,666 shares during the period. Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV’s holdings in Walmart were worth $491,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at $37,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total value of $1,215,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 566,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,485,124.40. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total value of $166,384.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,049,852.03. This trade represents a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 185,777 shares of company stock valued at $17,657,316. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WMT opened at $96.00 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $96.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.09. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $58.56 and a 1-year high of $105.30. The firm has a market cap of $771.16 billion, a PE ratio of 39.83, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. Research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s payout ratio is 39.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Tigress Financial increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup restated a “positive” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com lowered Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $103.07.

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.