CCM Investment Advisers LLC Trims Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

CCM Investment Advisers LLC trimmed its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 200,986 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,822 shares during the period. Walmart makes up about 2.0% of CCM Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th largest holding. CCM Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $18,159,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its stake in Walmart by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 183,276 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $16,559,000 after buying an additional 2,394 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 25.6% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,910,626 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $262,975,000 after purchasing an additional 593,874 shares during the last quarter. Avondale Wealth Management raised its position in Walmart by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 11,150 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,007,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. First International Bank & Trust lifted its stake in Walmart by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. First International Bank & Trust now owns 13,681 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,236,000 after purchasing an additional 2,159 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 24.7% during the fourth quarter. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC now owns 24,260 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,203,000 after buying an additional 4,806 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT traded up $0.80 during trading on Friday, reaching $92.60. 7,479,627 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,003,986. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The company has a market capitalization of $743.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.00, a P/E/G ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.55. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $53.39 and a 1 year high of $96.18. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $90.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.29.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The firm had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.51 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.79, for a total value of $2,411,175.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,843,929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $318,238,881.91. The trade was a 0.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total value of $1,215,375.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 566,794 shares in the company, valued at $52,485,124.40. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 140,412 shares of company stock worth $12,478,116 over the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Bank of America raised their target price on Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. StockNews.com downgraded Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $75.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. DZ Bank cut shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $91.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.08.

Walmart 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.