Hilton Capital Management LLC Acquires 77,047 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Hilton Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 75.6% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 178,898 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 77,047 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises about 1.1% of Hilton Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Hilton Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $14,446,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 77.3% during the third quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Hoese & Co LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the first quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 138.3% in the 2nd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 429 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on WMT shares. DA Davidson upped their target price on Walmart from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Melius Research assumed coverage on Walmart in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Walmart from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on Walmart from $66.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $86.98.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 4,057,369 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.20, for a total value of $313,228,886.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 611,988,318 shares in the company, valued at $47,245,498,149.60. The trade was a 0.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 2,709,163 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.37, for a total transaction of $209,607,941.31. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 630,501,148 shares in the company, valued at $48,781,873,820.76. This represents a 0.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,337,337 shares of company stock valued at $958,823,647 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Up 3.0 %

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $86.60 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $696.11 billion, a PE ratio of 45.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.19 and a beta of 0.51. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $49.85 and a 1 year high of $88.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $81.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $73.34.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 2.34%. The company had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.51 EPS. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 EPS for the current year.

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.