Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $134.69 and last traded at $133.2760, with a volume of 1529985 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $133.89.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on WMT shares. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $132.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $130.00 price target (up from $123.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 price target (up from $115.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $140.00 price objective (up previously from $130.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $121.00 target price on Walmart and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Thirty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.44.

Walmart Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.03 trillion, a PE ratio of 45.29, a P/E/G ratio of 5.12 and a beta of 0.65. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $118.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $108.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The retailer reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.02. Walmart had a net margin of 3.26% and a return on equity of 21.31%. The company had revenue of $179.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $175.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.58 EPS. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Walmart has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.580-2.630 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,388 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $166,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 645,642 shares in the company, valued at $77,477,040. This trade represents a 0.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.99, for a total value of $1,574,868.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 727,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,251,328.45. The trade was a 1.77% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 227,566 shares of company stock worth $26,790,653 in the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Renaissance Group LLC raised its position in Walmart by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Group LLC now owns 9,636 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,074,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Calton & Associates Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Calton & Associates Inc. now owns 27,220 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,033,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Advocacy Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Advocacy Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,392 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $378,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,561 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capstone Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Capstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,955 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $552,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Company Profile

Walmart is a multinational retail corporation that operates a broad portfolio of store formats and digital services. Its core business includes large-format supercenters, discount department stores, neighborhood grocery stores and a membership warehouse chain, Sam’s Club. The company’s merchandising mix covers groceries, household goods, apparel, electronics and pharmacy services, supplemented by private-label products and category-specific offerings. Walmart pairs its physical store network with online platforms and mobile applications to provide omnichannel shopping, fulfillment and delivery options for consumers and businesses.

The company was founded by Sam Walton, who opened the first store in Rogers, Arkansas in 1962; it is headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas.