Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Given Overweight Rating at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley reiterated their overweight rating on shares of Walmart (NYSE:WMT) in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $115.00 price target on the retailer’s stock, up from their previous price target of $106.00.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on WMT. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Walmart from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on Walmart from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $98.85.

Walmart Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE WMT opened at $105.10 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $94.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $84.95. The company has a market cap of $844.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.13, a P/E/G ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.55. Walmart has a 52 week low of $55.85 and a 52 week high of $105.24. 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 announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The business had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.51 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Walmart will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz purchased 5,446 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $91.81 per share, for a total transaction of $499,997.26. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 7,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $716,577.05. The trade was a 230.86 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares in the company, 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 175,177 shares of company stock worth $16,403,728 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arista Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Arista Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,387 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $667,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the period. Arrow Capital Pty Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $9,035,000. Arvest Bank Trust Division lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division now owns 202,533 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,299,000 after buying an additional 1,572 shares in the last quarter. Tobias Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Tobias Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 4,721 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $427,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $6,529,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.