Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Shares Down 2.1% Following Analyst Downgrade

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) shares dropped 2.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Evercore ISI lowered their price target on the stock from $107.00 to $100.00. Evercore ISI currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Walmart traded as low as $86.31 and last traded at $85.61. Approximately 6,293,141 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average daily volume of 15,759,048 shares. The stock had previously closed at $87.44.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Truist Financial increased their target price on Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $103.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction of $166,384.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at $44,049,852.03. This trade represents a 0.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total transaction of $2,689,601.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,785,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $349,609,579.70. This trade represents a 0.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 185,777 shares of company stock valued at $17,657,316. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Whelan Financial increased its position in shares of Walmart by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 4,339 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,937 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $538,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC now owns 3,431 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $310,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Walmart by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $924,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 15,685 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,417,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Trading Down 2.0 %

The stock has a market cap of $688.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.54, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $96.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $88.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

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

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.10%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

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.