Legacy Financial Strategies LLC Grows Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Legacy Financial Strategies LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 101.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 10,410 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,253 shares during the period. Legacy Financial Strategies LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $937,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WMT. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $924,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA grew its position in shares of Walmart by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 2,879 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $260,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Hobart Private Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Hobart Private Capital LLC now owns 6,926 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $626,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 22.3% during the fourth quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 619 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,720 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,915,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Stock Up 1.6 %

WMT stock opened at $102.77 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $825.62 billion, a PE ratio of 42.18, a P/E/G ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $84.36. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $55.85 and a 12 month high of $103.11.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.51 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,956,404.35. This trade represents a 0.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total transaction of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,419,362.80. This represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 175,177 shares of company stock worth $16,403,728. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price target on Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Walmart from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $96.95.

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.