Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Trading 0.3% Higher – Time to Buy?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) was up 0.3% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $94.57 and last traded at $93.87. Approximately 4,818,620 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 16,903,357 shares. The stock had previously closed at $93.55.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on WMT shares. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Walmart from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. DZ Bank downgraded shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $91.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two investment 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $93.69.

Walmart Trading Up 0.5 %

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $86.99 and a 200 day moving average of $77.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market cap of $754.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.57, a PEG ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.54.

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

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,065 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.69, for a total transaction of $166,624.85. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 457,493 shares in the company, valued at $36,915,110.17. This represents a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.64, for a total value of $2,348,559.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,873,053 shares in the company, valued at $312,322,993.92. This trade represents a 0.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 143,412 shares of company stock worth $12,228,259. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS increased its position in shares of Walmart by 2.3% in the third quarter. Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS now owns 85,424 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,898,000 after acquiring an additional 1,907 shares during the period. 1ST Source Bank grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.6% in the third quarter. 1ST Source Bank now owns 65,133 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,259,000 after purchasing an additional 998 shares during the last quarter. Alternative Investment Advisors LLC. purchased a new position in Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at about $318,000. DGS Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 18.4% during the 3rd quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 19,580 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,581,000 after purchasing an additional 3,048 shares during the period. Finally, Copley Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $303,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

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.