Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Raises Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 14.5% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 4,103,126 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 518,960 shares during the period. Walmart comprises 0.7% of Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $360,213,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 0.5% during the first quarter. Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC now owns 81,489 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,154,000 after purchasing an additional 436 shares during the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 19.6% during the first quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 37,968 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,333,000 after purchasing an additional 6,224 shares during the last quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 28.7% during the first quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC now owns 5,910 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $520,000 after purchasing an additional 1,319 shares during the last quarter. Generate Investment Management Ltd lifted its holdings in Walmart by 161.0% during the first quarter. Generate Investment Management Ltd now owns 248,816 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $21,844,000 after purchasing an additional 153,468 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Walmart during the first quarter valued at about $207,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on WMT. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, June 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $117.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, May 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $106.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.24, for a total transaction of $380,960.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,060,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $100,997,734.20. This trade represents a 0.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.66, for a total transaction of $195,052.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 398,024 shares in the company, valued at $35,288,807.84. This trade represents a 0.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 123,295 shares of company stock valued at $11,801,762. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Stock Down 0.8%

WMT stock opened at $97.24 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company’s 50 day moving average is $96.65 and its 200 day moving average is $94.20. The stock has a market cap of $776.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.78 and a beta of 0.69. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $66.67 and a 1-year high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $164.53 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 21.76%. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.17%.

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.