Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Sold by Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc.

Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. lowered its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 0.7% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 16,799 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 119 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises 1.6% of Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $2,641,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WMT. Carl Stuart Investment Advisor Inc. acquired a new stake in Walmart during the 1st quarter worth $4,210,753,000. Sageworth Trust Co increased its position in shares of Walmart by 2,414.3% during the first quarter. Sageworth Trust Co now owns 176 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 58.3% in the 1st quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 190 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, First Command Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in Walmart by 387.8% during the first quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 200 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WMT shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Walmart from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 14th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $175.00 to $177.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 8th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 2nd. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on Walmart from $176.00 to $182.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 7th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group increased their price objective on Walmart from $168.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 18th. Four 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $176.51.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $165.29 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $128.07 and a 12-month high of $165.85. The stock has a market cap of $444.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.79, a PEG ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a 50-day moving average of $158.96 and a two-hundred day moving average of $152.29.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 17th. The retailer reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.15. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.47% and a net margin of 2.23%. The firm had revenue of $161.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $160.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.77 EPS. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 6.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 2,149,275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.97, for a total transaction of $330,923,871.75. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 235,440,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,250,844,765.17. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 2,149,275 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.97, for a total value of $330,923,871.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 235,440,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,250,844,765.17. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 9,708 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.04, for a total transaction of $1,505,128.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,490,621 shares in the company, valued at $231,105,879.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 6,493,773 shares of company stock valued at $1,005,802,298. 46.51% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walmart Profile

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, and other units 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, walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, and samsclub.com; and mobile commerce applications.