Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Purchased by Oak Asset Management LLC

Oak Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 200.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,893 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,262 shares during the period. Oak Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $836,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwest Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Walmart by 199.3% in the first quarter. Northwest Capital Management Inc now owns 440 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Able Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of WMT opened at $68.07 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $64.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $59.53. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $49.85 and a twelve month high of $69.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $547.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.13, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.50.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WMT. StockNews.com cut shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 20th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $64.33 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $67.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.47.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.08, for a total transaction of $177,240.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 521,613 shares in the company, valued at $30,816,896.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.03, for a total transaction of $1,748,313.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,018,650 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $241,239,559.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.08, for a total transaction of $177,240.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 521,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,816,896.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 14,525,340 shares of company stock worth $953,023,399. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.