Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Given Buy Rating at DA Davidson

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by research analysts at DA Davidson in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $132.00 price target on the retailer’s stock. DA Davidson’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 24.49% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on WMT. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday. Citigroup reduced their target price on Walmart from $147.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Walmart from $137.00 to $131.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Truist Financial set a $114.00 price objective on Walmart and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $128.00 price objective (down from $137.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.88.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of Walmart stock traded up $0.20 during trading on Thursday, hitting $106.03. 4,352,826 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 25,489,555. Walmart has a twelve month low of $98.88 and a twelve month high of $135.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $110.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $119.08. The company has a market cap of $841.21 billion, a PE ratio of 38.25, a PEG ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.59.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $187.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $186.64 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.83% and a net margin of 3.00%.The business’s revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.68 earnings per share. Walmart has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.620-0.640 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.870 EPS. Analysts forecast that Walmart will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, EVP Daniel Danker sold 50,644 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.35, for a total transaction of $5,335,345.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 201,672 shares in the company, valued at $21,246,145.20. This represents a 20.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, EVP Christopher Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.34, for a total value of $308,386.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 569,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $60,523,730.02. The trade was a 0.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 69,264 shares of company stock valued at $7,401,242. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Montgomery Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Sankala Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Turim 21 Investimentos Ltda. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Company Profile

Walmart Inc is a multinational retail and technology company that operates supercenters, discount stores, neighborhood markets, e-commerce platforms and membership warehouse clubs. Its merchandise includes groceries, apparel, electronics, home goods, health and beauty products, general merchandise and other consumer products.

Founded by Sam Walton in 1962 and incorporated in 1969, Walmart is headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas. The company serves customers through operations in the United States and international markets, including Mexico, Canada, China, India and several countries in Central America and Africa.