Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Shares Up 1.5% – Still a Buy?

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) were up 1.5% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $114.16 and last traded at $113.90. Approximately 12,298,593 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 53% from the average session volume of 25,937,365 shares. The stock had previously closed at $112.21.

Walmart News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is rolling out more wellness benefits at Sam’s Club, including Weight Watchers perks, which could deepen member loyalty, support renewals, and boost recurring membership revenue. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is also getting attention for broad price cuts across groceries and household staples, which should help reinforce its reputation as a defensive, inflation-fighting retailer and drive traffic to stores and clubs. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer said Walmart is one of the “greatest companies on earth” and called the recent pullback an “incredible buying opportunity,” helping support sentiment around the stock. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary around Walmart’s health event and its AI shopping efforts highlights longer-term strategic investments, but these items are more thematic than immediate catalysts for the stock. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage comparing Walmart’s AI shopping race with Amazon underscores competitive pressure in retail tech, but it does not point to any near-term operational setback for Walmart. Article Title

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Walmart from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. UBS Group set a $141.00 price objective on shares of Walmart and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, June 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.85.

Walmart Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market cap of $906.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.97, a PEG ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 0.60. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $120.76 and its 200-day moving average is $122.02.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.66. Walmart had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 21.25%. The company had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $174.84 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.61 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 0.720-0.740 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 3,775 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.64, for a total transaction of $413,891.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 630,009 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,074,186.76. The trade was a 0.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 11,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total value of $1,308,670.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 120,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,300,550.91. The trade was a 8.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 104,505 shares of company stock worth $12,858,514 in the last three months. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WMT. Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the first quarter worth $29,000. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new stake in Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP acquired a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 57.4% in the 4th quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, Clayton Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 193.0% in the 4th quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC now owns 293 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Walmart

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.