Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Up 1% – What’s Next?

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) were up 1% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $90.74 and last traded at $90.43. Approximately 4,226,960 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 16,860,635 shares. The stock had previously closed at $89.50.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WMT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Walmart from $77.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Walmart from $90.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Walmart from $66.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $91.88.

Walmart Trading Up 2.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $737.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.11, a PEG ratio of 4.29 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $82.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $74.14.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 4,057,369 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.20, for a total transaction of $313,228,886.80. Following the sale, the insider now owns 611,988,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,245,498,149.60. This represents a 0.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.48, for a total value of $232,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 384,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,765,104.20. This trade represents a 0.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,337,337 shares of company stock valued at $958,823,647. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WMT. WFA Asset Management Corp grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 201.0% during the first quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 2,092 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 1,397 shares during the last quarter. Dupont Capital Management Corp increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 165.4% in the 1st quarter. Dupont Capital Management Corp now owns 270,147 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $16,255,000 after purchasing an additional 168,346 shares in the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart by 180.7% during the first quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC now owns 93,833 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,646,000 after buying an additional 60,408 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 248.0% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 732,829 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $44,091,000 after buying an additional 522,238 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% 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.