Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Sets New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Evercore ISI raised their price target on the stock from $82.00 to $85.00. Evercore ISI currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Walmart traded as high as $82.77 and last traded at $82.77, with a volume of 1862309 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $82.02.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on WMT. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Walmart from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Walmart from $75.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Walmart in a research report on Tuesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 price objective on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Walmart from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Walmart from $73.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $83.51.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,873,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $312,322,993.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,873,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $312,322,993.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 4,057,369 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.20, for a total value of $313,228,886.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 611,988,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,245,498,149.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,295,088 shares of company stock valued at $955,284,831 in the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AHL Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 192.1% during the 1st quarter. AHL Investment Management Inc. now owns 24,000 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,444,000 after buying an additional 15,785 shares during the period. Liberty Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the first quarter worth approximately $270,000. Commerce Bank raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 189.4% in the first quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 917,625 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $55,213,000 after purchasing an additional 600,521 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 290.7% in the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 270,065 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $16,250,000 after purchasing an additional 200,947 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 189.4% in the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 643,848 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $38,740,000 after purchasing an additional 421,366 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Trading Down 0.3 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $667.58 billion, a PE ratio of 43.18, a P/E/G ratio of 4.11 and a beta of 0.51. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $78.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $70.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

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

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.