CCM Investment Advisers LLC Cuts Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

CCM Investment Advisers LLC decreased its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 200,986 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,822 shares during the period. Walmart makes up 2.0% of CCM Investment Advisers LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. CCM Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $18,159,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. increased its stake in Walmart by 77.3% during the 3rd quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. Hoese & Co LLP acquired a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,065 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.69, for a total transaction of $166,624.85. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 457,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,915,110.17. The trade was a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.96, for a total value of $1,088,850.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 593,040 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,198,598.40. The trade was a 2.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 140,412 shares of company stock valued at $12,478,116 in the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walmart Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of Walmart stock traded up $0.80 on Friday, reaching $92.60. 7,479,627 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,003,986. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $53.39 and a fifty-two week high of $96.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $743.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $90.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $80.29.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.69 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on WMT. Melius Research assumed coverage on Walmart in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $95.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. DZ Bank lowered shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $91.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price target on Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Two equities 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $94.08.

About Walmart

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.