Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Stake Boosted by Huntington National Bank

Huntington National Bank increased its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 3.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,611,608 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 50,053 shares during the period. Walmart makes up about 0.9% of Huntington National Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Huntington National Bank’s holdings in Walmart were worth $130,138,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WMT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Walmart by 199.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 411,745,334 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $24,774,717,000 after purchasing an additional 274,229,968 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of Walmart by 181.0% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 56,861,234 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,421,342,000 after purchasing an additional 36,625,314 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.8% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 36,282,740 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,456,704,000 after buying an additional 644,353 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in Walmart by 3.0% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 16,766,325 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,353,881,000 after purchasing an additional 484,196 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Walmart by 5.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 16,184,945 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,095,946,000 after purchasing an additional 834,005 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Walmart from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $75.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $82.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $84.84.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $85.54 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $687.59 billion, a PE ratio of 44.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.80. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $49.85 and a fifty-two week high of $85.79. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $80.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $72.44.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.02. Walmart had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 21.72%. The company had revenue of $169.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $168.56 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.12, for a total transaction of $246,360.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 378,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,054,909.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.64, for a total transaction of $2,348,559.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,873,053 shares in the company, valued at $312,322,993.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.12, for a total value of $246,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 378,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,054,909.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,337,337 shares of company stock worth $958,823,647. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

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.