Kestra Advisory Services LLC Sells 49,153 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Kestra Advisory Services LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 6.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 749,385 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 49,153 shares during the quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $67,862,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. HMV Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at $317,000. Sienna Gestion grew its position in shares of Walmart by 864.3% during the 4th quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 94,555 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,542,000 after purchasing an additional 84,749 shares in the last quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at $283,000. Postrock Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at $2,061,000. Finally, Analyst IMS Investment Management Services Ltd. grew its position in shares of Walmart by 19.2% during the 4th quarter. Analyst IMS Investment Management Services Ltd. now owns 56,940 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,145,000 after purchasing an additional 9,166 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total transaction of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,419,362.80. This trade 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 is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 185,777 shares of company stock valued at $17,657,316. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on WMT. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Tigress Financial upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $103.20.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $85.29 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $58.56 and a 1 year high of $105.30. The company has a market cap of $685.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.39, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $95.74 and a 200 day moving average of $88.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings results 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. 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 the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is 39.00%.

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.