Mizuho Bank Ltd. Makes New $41,000 Investment in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Mizuho Bank Ltd. bought a new stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 450 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $41,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brophy Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,072,000. World Investment Advisors grew its position in shares of Walmart by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 271,515 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $24,532,000 after acquiring an additional 19,233 shares in the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 209.7% in the 4th quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $79,960,000 after acquiring an additional 599,257 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire raised its position in shares of Walmart by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,332,000 after acquiring an additional 5,786 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Modera Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 203,150 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,355,000 after purchasing an additional 9,292 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total value of $343,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares in the company, valued at $76,350,158.55. This trade represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total transaction of $2,493,888.12. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,972,517 shares in the company, valued at $340,166,630.71. This represents a 0.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 178,852 shares of company stock worth $16,785,080 in the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Walmart Trading Down 4.8 %

Shares of WMT stock opened at $83.09 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $94.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $89.52. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $58.56 and a fifty-two week high of $105.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $666.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.48, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on WMT shares. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Tigress Financial increased their price target on Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.17.

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.