Peoples Financial Services CORP. Has $1.44 Million Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Peoples Financial Services CORP. lessened its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,946 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 512 shares during the period. Peoples Financial Services CORP.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,441,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 77.3% during the 3rd quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Hoese & Co LLP bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC bought a new stake in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE WMT opened at $90.79 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $90.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The company has a market capitalization of $729.35 billion, a PE ratio of 37.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.55. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $53.44 and a 12-month high of $96.18.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.51 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on WMT shares. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Walmart from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. StockNews.com downgraded Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Walmart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Walmart from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Melius Research assumed coverage on Walmart in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.08.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, SVP David Chojnowski sold 5,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.45, for a total transaction of $512,120.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 87,404 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,993,095.80. This trade represents a 6.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total transaction of $1,215,375.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 566,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,485,124.40. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 138,347 shares of company stock worth $12,311,491 in the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walmart Profile

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.