Royal Fund Management LLC Acquires 1,968 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Royal Fund Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 147,404 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,968 shares during the period. Walmart makes up 1.2% of Royal Fund Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Royal Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $13,395,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 80,762 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,297,000 after acquiring an additional 2,114 shares in the last quarter. Martel Wealth Advisors Inc acquired a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth $217,000. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in Walmart by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 28,117 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,540,000 after purchasing an additional 1,067 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pure Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 13.9% in the 4th quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 31,744 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,868,000 after purchasing an additional 3,875 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on WMT. Citigroup boosted their target price on Walmart from $75.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Walmart from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. StockNews.com lowered Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Two 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.69.

Walmart Stock Up 1.2 %

NYSE WMT opened at $93.05 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company has a market cap of $747.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.19, a PEG ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a 50 day moving average of $91.31 and a 200-day moving average of $81.63. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $53.44 and a 1-year high of $96.18.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The firm had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.51 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.12, for a total value of $246,360.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 378,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,054,909.80. This trade represents a 0.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total value of $1,215,375.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 566,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,485,124.40. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 140,177 shares of company stock valued at $12,478,149 in the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.