Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Trading Up 0.3% After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) traded up 0.3% on Wednesday after Oppenheimer raised their price target on the stock from $100.00 to $110.00. Oppenheimer currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Walmart traded as high as $99.16 and last traded at $98.88. 2,340,342 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 17,766,697 shares. The stock had previously closed at $98.55.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Walmart from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Mizuho started coverage on Walmart in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 price target for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.94.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction of $166,384.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,049,852.03. This trade represents a 0.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.37, for a total transaction of $214,214.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 632,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $61,607,751.66. This trade represents a 0.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 133,857 shares of company stock valued at $12,444,743. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. raised its holdings in Walmart by 675.8% in the first quarter. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. now owns 9,310 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $819,000 after purchasing an additional 8,110 shares in the last quarter. IFG Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 99,021 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,693,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares in the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 554,849 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $48,710,000 after acquiring an additional 32,862 shares in the last quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP lifted its position in Walmart by 5.5% during the first quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 27,124 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,381,000 after acquiring an additional 1,405 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hurlow Wealth Management Group Inc. grew its holdings in Walmart by 8.1% in the first quarter. Hurlow Wealth Management Group Inc. now owns 22,311 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,671 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Down 1.4 %

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $90.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $91.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $779.41 billion, a PE ratio of 40.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.70.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. On average, analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. This represents a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.00%.

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.