Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Trading 1.1% Higher – Time to Buy?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)’s stock price traded up 1.1% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $87.33 and last traded at $86.96. 4,047,270 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 15,914,888 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.98.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.17.

Walmart Trading Up 1.2 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $95.19 and a 200-day moving average of $89.12. The stock has a market cap of $697.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.08%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total transaction of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,419,362.80. The trade was a 12.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total value of $2,689,601.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,785,702 shares in the company, valued at $349,609,579.70. This represents a 0.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 189,777 shares of company stock valued at $18,001,116. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC raised its stake in Walmart by 1,007.7% in the fourth quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.