Wells Fargo & Company Increases Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Price Target to $88.00

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) had its price objective lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $81.00 to $88.00 in a report published on Monday, Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the retailer’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on WMT. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Walmart from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on Walmart from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Walmart from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. HSBC boosted their price objective on Walmart from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price on Walmart from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Buy and an average target price of $80.19.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $79.91 on Monday. Walmart has a 52 week low of $49.85 and a 52 week high of $81.60. 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 business has a 50 day moving average price of $74.07 and a 200-day moving average price of $67.26. The company has a market cap of $642.34 billion, a PE ratio of 33.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.51.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 2.34%. The business had revenue of $169.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $168.56 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.61 EPS. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Walmart will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 2,709,163 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.37, for a total transaction of $209,607,941.31. Following the sale, the insider now owns 630,501,148 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,781,873,820.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Walmart news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 2,709,163 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.37, for a total value of $209,607,941.31. Following the sale, the insider now owns 630,501,148 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,781,873,820.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 359,616 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.25, for a total value of $28,139,952.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 603,989,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,262,194,181.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,317,999 shares of company stock worth $956,341,379. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Landmark Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Landmark Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,055 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,112,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Syverson Strege & Co lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 3,377 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $532,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Amussen Hunsaker Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Amussen Hunsaker Associates LLC now owns 15,979 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,519,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Per Stirling Capital Management LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Per Stirling Capital Management LLC. now owns 4,009 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $632,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in Walmart by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,166 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $975,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

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.