Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Up 1.3% – Should You Buy?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)’s stock price was up 1.3% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $89.11 and last traded at $88.90. Approximately 6,727,062 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 67% from the average daily volume of 20,173,061 shares. The stock had previously closed at $87.79.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Erste Group Bank cut Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Walmart from $99.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.17.

Walmart Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $711.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $94.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $89.46.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.62, for a total value of $2,697,464.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,766,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $348,852,396.42. This represents a 0.77 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,419,362.80. This trade represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 176,652 shares of company stock valued at $16,590,028 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

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

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.