Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Trading Down 1.3% on Insider Selling

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) were down 1.3% on Thursday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $86.28 and last traded at $88.55. Approximately 13,134,151 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 23% from the average daily volume of 16,985,375 shares. The stock had previously closed at $89.76.

Specifically, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.66, for a total transaction of $195,052.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 398,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,288,807.84. The trade was a 0.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total transaction of $2,493,888.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,972,517 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $340,166,630.71. This trade represents a 0.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on WMT shares. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, February 24th. 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.17.

Walmart Stock Down 4.8 %

The company’s fifty day moving average price is $94.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $89.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $666.12 billion, a PE ratio of 34.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 business 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%. Analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s payout ratio is 39.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 1,007.7% during 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 during the last quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. 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.