Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $83.37 and last traded at $83.31, with a volume of 1343475 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $82.45.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on WMT shares. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 target price for the company. Citigroup upped their target price on Walmart from $75.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Melius Research initiated coverage on Walmart in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price objective on Walmart from $82.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on Walmart from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $83.89.

Walmart Trading Up 1.4 %

The business has a 50 day moving average of $79.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $71.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $671.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.49, a P/E/G ratio of 4.12 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 2.34%. The company had revenue of $169.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $168.56 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Walmart news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.64, for a total transaction of $2,348,559.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,873,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $312,322,993.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Walmart news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 4,057,369 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.20, for a total value of $313,228,886.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 611,988,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,245,498,149.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s 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 owns 3,873,053 shares in the company, valued at $312,322,993.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,334,337 shares of company stock worth $958,577,287 over the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WMT. WFA Asset Management Corp grew its position in Walmart by 201.0% during the first quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 2,092 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $126,000 after buying an additional 1,397 shares during the period. Strategic Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 36.4% in the 1st quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 9,728 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $585,000 after purchasing an additional 2,597 shares during the period. American Institute for Advanced Investment Management LLP lifted its stake in Walmart by 189.6% in the first quarter. American Institute for Advanced Investment Management LLP now owns 6,560 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 4,295 shares during the last quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 243.0% during the first quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,144 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $490,000 after purchasing an additional 5,770 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 221.5% during the first quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 106,363 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,400,000 after purchasing an additional 73,279 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by 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.