Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) have earned an average rating of “Buy” from the thirty-one ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $109.2857.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WMT. Mizuho reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $103.00 price objective (up from $102.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, June 9th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE WMT opened at $99.96 on Monday. Walmart has a 52-week low of $72.52 and a 52-week high of $105.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company has a market capitalization of $797.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.72, a P/E/G ratio of 4.80 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a fifty day moving average of $97.60 and a 200-day moving average of $95.56.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 21.76%. The company had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.60 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Walmart will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 90.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is 40.17%.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 28,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total transaction of $2,716,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 1,064,455 shares in the company, valued at $103,252,135. The trade was a 2.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,148 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.58, for a total transaction of $2,815,113.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 4,451,199 shares in the company, valued at $429,896,799.42. This represents a 0.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 140,334 shares of company stock worth $13,526,350 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WMT. Full Sail Capital LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Full Sail Capital LLC now owns 8,702 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $786,000 after purchasing an additional 541 shares during the period. Leslie Global Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 22.0% in the fourth quarter. Leslie Global Wealth LLC now owns 3,154 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 568 shares during the period. Monument Capital Management grew its holdings in Walmart by 94.2% in the first quarter. Monument Capital Management now owns 55,004 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,829,000 after purchasing an additional 26,685 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Walmart by 11.8% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 7,959,752 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $698,787,000 after purchasing an additional 838,689 shares during the period. Finally, Milestone Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 156.7% in the first quarter. Milestone Asset Management LLC now owns 54,659 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,799,000 after purchasing an additional 33,370 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other 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.