BMO Capital Markets Issues Positive Forecast for Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) had its price target raised by BMO Capital Markets from $80.00 to $100.00 in a report published on Monday,Benzinga reports. BMO Capital Markets currently has an outperform rating on the retailer’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on WMT. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $83.00 price target (up previously from $81.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Truist Financial raised shares of Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.49.

Walmart Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of WMT opened at $88.32 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $709.94 billion, a PE ratio of 36.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.51. The company’s fifty day moving average is $81.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $73.54. Walmart has a fifty-two week low of $49.85 and a fifty-two week high of $88.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. Analysts forecast that Walmart will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 2,375,563 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.96, for a total transaction of $182,823,328.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 619,646,544 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,687,998,026.24. The trade was a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.96, for a total value of $1,088,850.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 593,040 shares in the company, valued at $49,198,598.40. This trade represents a 2.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,337,337 shares of company stock worth $958,823,647. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 88,188 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,121,000 after acquiring an additional 3,043 shares during the period. Tudor Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter worth approximately $504,000. Aldebaran Financial Inc. lifted its position in Walmart by 10.9% in the third quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc. now owns 22,250 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,797,000 after purchasing an additional 2,191 shares during the period. Tri Ri Asset Management Corp bought a new position in Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,450,000. Finally, SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. increased its position in shares of Walmart by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 9,052 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 364 shares during the period. 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.