Occidental Asset Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Occidental Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,564 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 660 shares during the period. Occidental Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $2,918,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 112,181.6% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 22,854,919 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,240,599,000 after buying an additional 22,834,564 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,598,736,000. Providence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 1,164,937.0% in the 1st quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,718,400 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000,000 after purchasing an additional 4,717,995 shares during the period. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 7,546.2% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,166,995 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $467,747,000 after purchasing an additional 3,125,576 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 179.2% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,578,677 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $254,078,000 after purchasing an additional 2,938,948 shares during the period. 33.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.37, for a total value of $161,370.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 169,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,390,136.95. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 4,375 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.73, for a total transaction of $676,943.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 282,242 shares in the company, valued at $43,671,304.66. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.37, for a total transaction of $161,370.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 169,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,390,136.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 6,493,773 shares of company stock valued at $1,005,802,298. Corporate insiders own 46.51% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WMT. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $174.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 21st. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $176.00 to $182.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 18th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 18th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $159.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $176.51.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT traded down $0.96 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $163.68. 1,114,250 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,943,631. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a market capitalization of $440.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.66, a PEG ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 0.49. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $128.07 and a 52-week high of $165.85. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $159.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $152.70.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 17th. The retailer reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $161.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $160.22 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.23% and a return on equity of 21.47%. The company’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.77 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 6.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Walmart

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, and other units 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, walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, and samsclub.com; and mobile commerce applications.