First Community Trust NA Acquires 78 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

First Community Trust NA increased its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,736 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Walmart makes up 1.4% of First Community Trust NA’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. First Community Trust NA’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,216,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WMT. GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.8% in the first quarter. GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. now owns 126,558 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,661,000 after acquiring an additional 1,004 shares during the last quarter. Wiley BROS. Aintree Capital LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Wiley BROS. Aintree Capital LLC now owns 11,803 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,740,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in Walmart by 7.3% in the first quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 4,737 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $699,000 after buying an additional 323 shares during the last quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 6.2% in the first quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC now owns 3,873 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $571,000 after buying an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BOS Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $503,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.18% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE WMT opened at $164.64 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $128.07 and a twelve month high of $165.85. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $159.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $152.38. The firm has a market cap of $443.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 0.49.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 473,370 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.75, for a total transaction of $73,727,377.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 241,479,146 shares in the company, valued at $37,610,376,989.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.37, for a total transaction of $161,370.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 169,735 shares in the company, valued at $27,390,136.95. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 473,370 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.75, for a total transaction of $73,727,377.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 241,479,146 shares in the company, valued at $37,610,376,989.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 6,493,773 shares of company stock worth $1,005,802,298. Insiders own 46.51% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on WMT. BNP Paribas started coverage on Walmart in a research note on Monday, June 12th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $186.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com started coverage on Walmart in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “strong-buy” rating for the company. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $168.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 18th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $173.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 18th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 11th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $176.51.

About Walmart

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.