Apexium Financial LP Purchases 28,194 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Apexium Financial LP lifted its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1,684.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,868 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 28,194 shares during the period. Apexium Financial LP’s holdings in Walmart were worth $4,709,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Kepos Capital LP purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Milestone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth about $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on WMT shares. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $62.00 to $63.33 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Walmart from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Stifel Europe raised their price objective on Walmart from $56.33 to $58.33 in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Walmart to $66.67 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.97.

Walmart Stock Up 7.0 %

Shares of NYSE WMT traded up $4.16 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $63.99. 60,524,049 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,778,887. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $60.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $56.36. The company has a market cap of $515.63 billion, a PE ratio of 33.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.49. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $48.34 and a twelve month high of $64.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.24.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $161.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $159.57 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 21.08%. The company’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.49 EPS. Research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.2075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.46%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.08, for a total value of $177,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 521,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,816,896.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.08, for a total transaction of $177,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 521,613 shares in the company, valued at $30,816,896.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.03, for a total transaction of $1,748,313.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 4,018,650 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $241,239,559.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 29,019,140 shares of company stock worth $1,696,045,631. Corporate insiders own 46.51% of the company’s stock.

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.