Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Down 1.5% After Insider Selling

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) shares traded down 1.5% during mid-day trading on Friday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $91.31 and last traded at $91.40. 2,627,537 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 17,006,006 shares. The stock had previously closed at $92.79.

Specifically, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total value of $2,689,601.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,785,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $349,609,579.70. This represents a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total value of $1,215,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 566,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,485,124.40. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WMT shares. Barclays lifted their target price on Walmart from $78.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $89.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Roth Mkm boosted their price target on Walmart from $81.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price objective on Walmart from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $93.69.

Walmart Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $736.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.54. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $88.60 and a 200 day moving average of $78.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 77.3% during the 3rd quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. Hoese & Co LLP bought a new position in Walmart in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in Walmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

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.