Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Shares Down 0.1% – Should You Sell?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) shares were down 0.1% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $94.57 and last traded at $95.91. Approximately 4,355,510 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 15,499,403 shares. The stock had previously closed at $95.98.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays reaffirmed 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 report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $103.07.

Walmart Stock Down 1.3 %

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $96.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $88.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market cap of $761.04 billion, a PE ratio of 39.32, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.83 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.15, for a total transaction of $1,261,968.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 460,672 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,293,612.80. This represents a 2.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.95, for a total value of $2,823,571.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,558,247 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $344,972,046.65. This represents a 0.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 185,777 shares of company stock worth $17,657,316 in the last quarter. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Swedbank AB raised its position in Walmart by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,345,293 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $431,632,000 after buying an additional 18,644 shares during the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 10.5% during the third quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 34,001 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,746,000 after purchasing an additional 3,231 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 2.4% during the third quarter. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC now owns 12,257 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $990,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 14.6% in the third quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 19,106 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,543,000 after purchasing an additional 2,441 shares during the period. Finally, One Plus One Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $328,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.