Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Up 1.4% – Here’s Why

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) rose 1.4% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $92.21 and last traded at $92.06. Approximately 3,807,853 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 60% from the average daily volume of 9,576,908 shares. The stock had previously closed at $90.78.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WMT. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. StockNews.com cut Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on Walmart from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $93.69.

Walmart Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $735.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.59, a PEG ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.55. The company’s 50 day moving average is $89.41 and its 200 day moving average is $79.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.79, for a total value of $2,411,175.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,843,929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $318,238,881.91. This trade represents a 0.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total transaction of $1,215,375.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 140,412 shares of company stock worth $12,478,116. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Kozak & Associates Inc. grew its position in Walmart by 22.3% in the fourth quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 619 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,720 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,915,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 43,549 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,591,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.4% during the third quarter. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC now owns 32,633 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,635,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CAP Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 2.1% during the third quarter. CAP Partners LLC now owns 6,054 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $489,000 after acquiring an additional 125 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.