Hancock Whitney Corp Acquires 17,327 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Hancock Whitney Corp increased its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 11.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 172,960 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 17,327 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in Walmart were worth $15,627,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. World Investment Advisors raised its holdings in Walmart by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 271,515 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $24,532,000 after acquiring an additional 19,233 shares during the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 209.7% during the 4th quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $79,960,000 after buying an additional 599,257 shares during the period. Bank of New Hampshire boosted its position in Walmart by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,332,000 after purchasing an additional 5,786 shares during the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 203,150 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $18,355,000 after purchasing an additional 9,292 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Iowa State Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 213.8% in the fourth quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 26,807 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,422,000 after buying an additional 18,263 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WMT. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on Walmart from $110.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, April 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Raymond James lowered their price target on shares of Walmart from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.58.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total transaction of $374,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,096,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $102,518,542.50. The trade was a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total transaction of $2,493,888.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,972,517 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $340,166,630.71. This trade represents a 0.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 140,533 shares of company stock valued at $13,241,740 in the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walmart Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of WMT opened at $95.01 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $58.58 and a 1 year high of $105.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $761.68 billion, a PE ratio of 39.42, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $90.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $90.54.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. Analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.99%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

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.