Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Trading 0.3% Higher on Analyst Upgrade

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)’s stock price traded up 0.3% on Tuesday after Evercore ISI raised their price target on the stock from $94.00 to $96.00. Evercore ISI currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Walmart traded as high as $93.15 and last traded at $92.89. 2,967,509 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 16,820,412 shares. The stock had previously closed at $92.64.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on WMT. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Melius Research began coverage on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Roth Mkm raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $92.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.64, for a total value of $2,348,559.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,873,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $312,322,993.92. The trade was a 0.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 4,057,369 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.20, for a total transaction of $313,228,886.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 611,988,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,245,498,149.60. This trade represents a 0.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 7,300,460 shares of company stock worth $570,820,065. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter valued at $26,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 138.3% during the second quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 429 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Cultivar Capital Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 77.3% during the third quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Hoese & Co LLP acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the third quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Up 1.0 %

The company has a market cap of $759.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.76, a P/E/G ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $84.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $75.57.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The company had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.