Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Price Target Raised to $105.00

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) had its target price increased by KeyCorp from $100.00 to $105.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the retailer’s stock.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America upped their price objective on Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Walmart from $98.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on Walmart from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.43.

Walmart Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE WMT opened at $94.70 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company has a market cap of $760.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.86, a PEG ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.55. Walmart has a 12 month low of $57.77 and a 12 month high of $105.30. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $95.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $86.44.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Walmart will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz purchased 5,446 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $91.81 per share, with a total value of $499,997.26. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $716,577.05. This represents a 230.86 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $166,658.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,956,404.35. The trade was a 0.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 176,777 shares of company stock worth $16,570,112 in the last ninety days. Corporate 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 the stock. Whelan Financial raised its position in Walmart by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 4,339 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Walmart by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,937 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $538,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC raised its position in Walmart by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC now owns 3,431 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $310,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Walmart by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $924,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 15,685 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,417,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. 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.