Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Increases Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 4.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,064,228 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 48,819 shares during the period. Walmart comprises 1.8% of Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $96,153,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. increased its stake in Walmart by 77.3% in the 3rd quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Walmart from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Walmart from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.95.

Walmart Trading Up 1.6 %

Walmart stock opened at $102.77 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $94.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $84.36. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $55.85 and a 12 month high of $103.11. The company has a market capitalization of $825.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.55.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The business had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 257,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,419,362.80. The trade was a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 175,177 shares of company stock valued at $16,403,728. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.