Intech Investment Management LLC Grows Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 121.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,138,948 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 624,420 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for 1.0% of Intech Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $68,531,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Partnership Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Able Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Tidemark LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,398 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total transaction of $166,661.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 463,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,239,034.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.08, for a total value of $177,240.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 521,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,816,896.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,398 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total transaction of $166,661.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 463,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,239,034.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,527,738 shares of company stock worth $953,190,060 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock traded down $0.07 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $70.75. 11,665,526 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,789,591. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $49.85 and a fifty-two week high of $71.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $569.08 billion, a PE ratio of 30.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.50. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $66.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.08. Walmart had a net margin of 2.88% and a return on equity of 21.57%. The business had revenue of $161.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $159.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.49 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on WMT shares. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on Walmart from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $81.00 target price for the company. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Walmart from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $71.09.

Walmart 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.