Lmcg Investments LLC Lowers Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Lmcg Investments LLC lessened its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 31.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 133,927 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 62,488 shares during the period. Lmcg Investments LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $12,100,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Aspiriant LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 13.6% during the fourth quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 16,409 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,483,000 after acquiring an additional 1,959 shares during the period. Royal Fund Management LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Royal Fund Management LLC now owns 147,404 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $13,395,000 after purchasing an additional 1,968 shares in the last quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $48,000. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in Walmart by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 80,762 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,297,000 after purchasing an additional 2,114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Martel Wealth Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter worth $217,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total value of $1,215,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 566,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,485,124.40. This represents a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.79, for a total value of $2,411,175.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,843,929 shares in the company, valued at $318,238,881.91. This trade represents a 0.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 140,177 shares of company stock worth $12,478,149 in the last three months. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on WMT. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Walmart from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price target on Walmart from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two equities 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $94.69.

Walmart Price Performance

NYSE:WMT opened at $93.05 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $91.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.63. The firm has a market cap of $747.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.19, a PEG ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 0.55. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $53.44 and a one year high of $96.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The firm had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.51 earnings per share. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 EPS 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.