M&G Plc Takes Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

M&G Plc bought a new stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 36,906 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,214,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Able Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Tidemark LLC bought a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.09.

Walmart Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of WMT traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $70.75. 11,665,526 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,789,591. The company has a market cap of $569.08 billion, a PE ratio of 30.28, a PEG ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.50. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $66.96 and its 200-day moving average is $61.20. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $49.85 and a 52 week high of $71.33. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.08. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 2.88%. The company had revenue of $161.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $159.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,398 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total value of $166,661.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 463,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,239,034.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,398 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 463,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,239,034.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 25,578 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.58, for a total value of $1,728,561.24. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 390,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,367,350.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,527,738 shares of company stock valued at $953,190,060 over the last three months. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Company 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.