First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Sells 12,977 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. trimmed its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 6.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 174,759 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 12,977 shares during the period. Walmart comprises approximately 0.8% of First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest holding. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $14,112,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WMT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Walmart by 199.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 411,745,334 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $24,774,717,000 after purchasing an additional 274,229,968 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 181.0% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 56,861,234 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,421,342,000 after buying an additional 36,625,314 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in Walmart by 187.4% in the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 13,303,200 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $800,454,000 after buying an additional 8,674,100 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its stake in Walmart by 284.0% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 11,122,273 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $669,227,000 after acquiring an additional 8,225,552 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in Walmart by 184.1% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 12,567,533 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $756,188,000 after acquiring an additional 8,144,393 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.64, for a total value of $2,348,559.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,873,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $312,322,993.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 value of $2,348,559.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,063 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.76, for a total value of $166,607.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 459,558 shares in the company, valued at $37,113,904.08. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,334,337 shares of company stock valued at $958,577,287 over the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WMT. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $73.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $83.83.

Walmart Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $81.43 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.86. The company has a market capitalization of $654.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.13 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 52-week low of $49.85 and a 52-week high of $83.34.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 2.34%. The company had revenue of $169.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $168.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.61 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

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.