Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Up 0.5% – Here’s What Happened

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)’s stock price was up 0.5% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $86.11 and last traded at $85.62. Approximately 4,326,183 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average daily volume of 16,009,972 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.21.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Citigroup reaffirmed a “positive” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.17.

Walmart Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company’s 50-day moving average is $94.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.22. The firm has a market cap of $686.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.51, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53.

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

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued 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 1.10%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,419,362.80. This trade represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total value of $343,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $76,350,158.55. This represents a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 147,528 shares of company stock valued at $14,096,140 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WMT. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Walmart by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 422,736,888 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $38,194,278,000 after acquiring an additional 2,050,683 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 90,635,238 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,167,186,000 after acquiring an additional 3,017,829 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth about $5,737,355,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Walmart by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 48,793,045 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,408,452,000 after acquiring an additional 1,133,201 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Walmart by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,641,936 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,943,049,000 after purchasing an additional 3,550,037 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.