Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Price Target Raised to $118.00

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) had its price objective lifted by Piper Sandler from $93.00 to $118.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. Piper Sandler currently has an overweight rating on the retailer’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on WMT. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price target on Walmart from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. DZ Bank cut shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $91.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Walmart from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $101.87.

Walmart Trading Down 6.5 %

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $97.22 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $95.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $86.25. Walmart has a one year low of $57.60 and a one year high of $105.30. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $781.02 billion, a PE ratio of 39.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.39 and a beta of 0.55.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Walmart will post 2.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st will be issued a $0.235 dividend. This is a boost from Walmart’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.97%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares in the company, valued at $25,419,362.80. This represents a 12.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP David Chojnowski sold 5,600 shares of the 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. The trade was a 6.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 176,777 shares of company stock valued at $16,570,112. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Forum Financial Management LP boosted its holdings in Walmart by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 75,100 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,785,000 after buying an additional 2,897 shares during the period. Griffith & Werner Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $285,000. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,309,000. Michels Family Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter worth $533,000. Finally, Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $1,326,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Company 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.