Arkansas Financial Group Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Arkansas Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 34.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,096 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,617 shares during the quarter. Arkansas Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $487,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WMT opened at $164.64 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.26. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $128.07 and a 1 year high of $165.85. The company’s 50-day moving average is $159.34 and its 200 day moving average is $152.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $443.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 0.49.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 17th. The retailer reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $160.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.77 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 6.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group lifted their target price on Walmart from $173.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 18th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 8th. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, June 12th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $186.00 target price on the stock. Roth Mkm raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $169.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 18th. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their target price on Walmart from $176.00 to $182.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $176.51.

Insider Activity

In other Walmart news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 473,370 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.75, for a total value of $73,727,377.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 241,479,146 shares in the company, valued at $37,610,376,989.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 473,370 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,610,376,989.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.37, for a total value of $161,370.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 169,735 shares in the company, valued at $27,390,136.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 6,493,773 shares of company stock worth $1,005,802,298. Corporate insiders own 46.51% of the company’s stock.

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.