Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Up 2.2% – What’s Next?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)’s stock price rose 2.2% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $87.53 and last traded at $87.24. Approximately 6,573,711 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 58% from the average daily volume of 15,794,538 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.35.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on WMT. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Walmart from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target (up previously from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $103.20.

Walmart Trading Up 2.9 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The stock has a market cap of $705.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.48, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $95.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $88.80.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total value of $1,215,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 566,794 shares in the company, valued at $52,485,124.40. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.95, for a total value of $2,823,571.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,558,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $344,972,046.65. The trade was a 0.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 185,777 shares of company stock worth $17,657,316. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WMT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC raised its stake in Walmart by 1,007.7% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the period. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

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.