Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Down 0.6% – What’s Next?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) shares dropped 0.6% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $84.73 and last traded at $85.09. Approximately 3,795,801 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 16,021,219 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.63.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on WMT. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Citigroup reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Walmart from $99.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their price objective on Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.17.

Walmart Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $94.76 and a 200 day moving average of $89.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The stock has a market cap of $681.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.25, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.11%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.62, for a total value of $2,697,464.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,766,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $348,852,396.42. This trade represents a 0.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total transaction of $343,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $76,350,158.55. This trade represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 147,528 shares of company stock valued at $14,096,140. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,737,355,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $2,306,627,000. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 37.1% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 25,339,448 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,289,419,000 after purchasing an additional 6,860,189 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Walmart by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 32,020,800 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,893,079,000 after purchasing an additional 3,927,173 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Walmart by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,641,936 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,943,049,000 after purchasing an additional 3,550,037 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

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.