Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Shares Down 0.4%

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) fell 0.4% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $75.14 and last traded at $75.26. 1,999,443 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 17,483,617 shares. The stock had previously closed at $75.58.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on WMT shares. Barclays raised their target price on Walmart from $66.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $63.33 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.64.

Walmart Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $69.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $64.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $608.90 billion, a PE ratio of 32.40, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.50.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.02. Walmart had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 21.72%. The firm had revenue of $169.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $168.56 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.61 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.19, for a total transaction of $207,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 387,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,787,946.35. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.19, for a total value of $207,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 387,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,787,946.35. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.39, for a total transaction of $1,991,790.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,960,402 shares in the company, valued at $270,851,892.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 8,827,328 shares of company stock valued at $584,261,549. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WMT. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Walmart by 199.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 411,745,334 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $24,774,717,000 after acquiring an additional 274,229,968 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 181.0% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 56,861,234 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,421,342,000 after purchasing an additional 36,625,314 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 36,282,740 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,456,704,000 after purchasing an additional 644,353 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Walmart by 183.0% in the first 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, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $3,674,652,000. 26.76% of the stock is 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.