American National Bank Buys 164,491 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

American National Bank lifted its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 215.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 241,009 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 164,491 shares during the quarter. Walmart makes up approximately 1.9% of American National Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. American National Bank’s holdings in Walmart were worth $14,502,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Seven Mile Advisory grew its holdings in Walmart by 1.6% during the third quarter. Seven Mile Advisory now owns 3,953 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $632,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Flynn Zito Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Flynn Zito Capital Management LLC now owns 1,636 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. ICW Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 15,451 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,436,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Bill Few Associates Inc. grew its holdings in Walmart by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Bill Few Associates Inc. now owns 5,806 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $915,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Finally, Gateway Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 4.1% during the third quarter. Gateway Advisory LLC now owns 1,643 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $263,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WMT shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Walmart from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Walmart from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on Walmart from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Walmart from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Walmart from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.97.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.81, for a total transaction of $798,131.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 645,517 shares in the company, valued at $39,253,888.77. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 1,132,123 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.02, for a total value of $73,610,637.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 647,371,888 shares in the company, valued at $42,092,120,157.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.81, for a total value of $798,131.25. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 645,517 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,253,888.77. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 14,493,971 shares of company stock worth $950,549,592. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $67.91 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $63.23 and a 200-day moving average of $58.70. The company has a market capitalization of $546.24 billion, a PE ratio of 29.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.52. 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 Inc. has a 52-week low of $49.85 and a 52-week high of $68.55.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $161.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $159.57 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.88% and a return on equity of 21.57%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.49 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.