Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Trading 0.5% Higher

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)’s share price rose 0.5% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $68.81 and last traded at $68.57. Approximately 2,228,469 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 17,729,232 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.24.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the subject of several research reports. HSBC upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on Walmart from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $64.33 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Walmart from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $66.00 to $81.00 in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.47.

Walmart Price Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $64.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $59.77. The company has a market cap of $553.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.35, a P/E/G ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.08. Walmart had a net margin of 2.88% and a return on equity of 21.57%. The firm had revenue of $161.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $159.57 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.49 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.03, for a total value of $1,748,313.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,018,650 shares in the company, valued at approximately $241,239,559.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.03, for a total value of $1,748,313.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 4,018,650 shares in the company, valued at $241,239,559.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 1,132,123 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.02, for a total value of $73,610,637.46. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 647,371,888 shares in the company, valued at $42,092,120,157.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 14,525,340 shares of company stock worth $953,023,399. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WMT. Partnership Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Able Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Tidemark LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

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.