Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-eight research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twenty-six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $78.64.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Walmart from $69.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 6th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Walmart from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Walmart from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on Walmart from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $77.23 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.80. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $70.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $64.79. Walmart has a 52-week low of $49.85 and a 52-week high of $77.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $621.20 billion, a PE ratio of 33.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.51.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 2.34%. The business had revenue of $169.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $168.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.61 EPS. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Walmart will post 2.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 1,244,347 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.63, for a total transaction of $82,910,840.61. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 633,518,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,211,325,061.93. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Walmart news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 1,244,347 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.63, for a total transaction of $82,910,840.61. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 633,518,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,211,325,061.93. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP David Chojnowski sold 8,791 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.00, for a total value of $597,788.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 94,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,420,220. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 6,306,511 shares of company stock worth $420,470,807. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new position in Walmart during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Northwest Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 199.3% during the 1st quarter. Northwest Capital Management Inc now owns 440 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 138.3% during the 2nd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 429 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Cultivar Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Partnership Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. 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.