Moors & Cabot Inc. Purchases 2,824 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Moors & Cabot Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 274,306 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,824 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for approximately 1.2% of Moors & Cabot Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $24,784,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WMT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted 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. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.20.

Walmart Price Performance

Walmart stock opened at $87.44 on Wednesday. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $58.56 and a 52-week high of $105.30. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $96.07 and a 200-day moving average of $88.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $702.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.28, a PEG 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 257,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,419,362.80. This represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total transaction of $2,689,601.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,785,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $349,609,579.70. This trade represents a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 185,777 shares of company stock valued at $17,657,316 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

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.