Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Up 1.2%

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) rose 1.2% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $68.75 and last traded at $68.72. Approximately 1,682,441 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 91% from the average daily volume of 18,042,816 shares. The stock had previously closed at $67.91.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WMT. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Walmart from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $66.00 to $81.00 in a report on Monday, June 10th. KeyCorp upped their price target on Walmart from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Walmart from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.97.

Walmart Stock Down 2.1 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $542.30 billion, a PE ratio of 28.85, a PEG ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 0.52. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $63.56 and its 200-day moving average is $59.05.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.08. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 2.88%. The business had revenue of $161.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $159.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.49 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 1,244,347 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.63, for a total value of $82,910,840.61. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 633,518,311 shares in the company, valued at $42,211,325,061.93. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 1,244,347 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.63, for a total transaction of $82,910,840.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 633,518,311 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,211,325,061.93. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 3,633,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.80, for a total value of $242,737,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 636,898,811 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,544,840,574.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,480,846 shares of company stock valued at $949,751,461 in the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WMT. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Walmart by 199.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 411,745,334 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $24,774,717,000 after buying an additional 274,229,968 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 181.0% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 56,861,234 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,421,342,000 after acquiring an additional 36,625,314 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $3,674,652,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Walmart by 183.0% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 29,172,985 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,755,339,000 after purchasing an additional 18,865,484 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates raised its stake in Walmart by 212.6% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 14,035,473 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $844,514,000 after purchasing an additional 9,544,958 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.