Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Trading Up 0.9% Following Analyst Upgrade

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) shares were up 0.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday after Barclays raised their price target on the stock from $90.00 to $98.00. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Walmart traded as high as $91.85 and last traded at $91.65. Approximately 13,426,350 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 4% from the average daily volume of 12,967,504 shares. The stock had previously closed at $90.81.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $89.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, DZ Bank downgraded Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $91.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $93.95.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.96, for a total value of $1,088,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 593,040 shares in the company, valued at $49,198,598.40. This trade represents a 2.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,065 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.69, for a total transaction of $166,624.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 457,493 shares in the company, valued at $36,915,110.17. This trade represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 140,412 shares of company stock valued at $12,478,116 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. increased its holdings in Walmart by 77.3% in the 3rd quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. Hoese & Co LLP purchased a new position in Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $90.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.29. The stock has a market cap of $736.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.55.

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

About Walmart

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.