Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC Trims Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC cut its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 124,469 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,998 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for about 2.2% of Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $11,245,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC now owns 3,431 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $310,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Walmart by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $924,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 15,685 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,417,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Van Strum & Towne Inc. increased its position in shares of Walmart by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Van Strum & Towne Inc. now owns 6,849 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $619,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC now owns 5,584 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $505,000 after buying an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Walmart from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “positive” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total value of $343,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $76,350,158.55. This represents a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total transaction of $1,215,375.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 566,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,485,124.40. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 189,777 shares of company stock worth $18,001,116. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock opened at $85.94 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $688.93 billion, a PE ratio of 35.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $58.56 and a one year high of $105.30. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $95.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $88.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.83 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s payout ratio is 39.00%.

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.