Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Up 1.4% – What’s Next?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)’s stock price rose 1.4% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $83.68 and last traded at $83.64. Approximately 2,061,580 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 16,753,268 shares. The stock had previously closed at $82.45.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Redburn Atlantic raised Walmart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $83.00 price objective (up previously from $81.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $82.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.89.

Walmart Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $79.93 and a 200-day moving average of $71.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $671.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.12 and a beta of 0.51.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 4,057,369 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.20, for a total value of $313,228,886.80. Following the sale, the insider now owns 611,988,318 shares in the company, valued at $47,245,498,149.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.48, for a total transaction of $232,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 384,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,765,104.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 4,057,369 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.20, for a total value of $313,228,886.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 611,988,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,245,498,149.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 12,334,337 shares of company stock valued at $958,577,287. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Walmart by 199.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 411,745,334 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $24,774,717,000 after buying an additional 274,229,968 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 181.0% in 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 acquiring an additional 36,625,314 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 187.4% in the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 13,303,200 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $800,454,000 after purchasing an additional 8,674,100 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 284.0% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 11,122,273 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $669,227,000 after purchasing an additional 8,225,552 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart by 8,814.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 6,963,218 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $562,280,000 after purchasing an additional 6,885,106 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.