Jefferies Financial Group Issues Positive Forecast for Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) had its price target lifted by stock analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $105.00 to $111.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the retailer's stock. Jefferies Financial Group's target price indicates a potential upside of 16.33% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Walmart from $89.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Redburn Atlantic raised Walmart to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Walmart from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group increased their price target on Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $93.69.

Walmart Stock Up 0.6 %

Walmart stock traded up $0.55 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $95.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 22,479,994 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,911,268. Walmart has a 52-week low of $51.04 and a 52-week high of $96.18. The company has a market cap of $766.55 billion, a PE ratio of 39.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm's 50 day moving average is $86.41 and its 200 day moving average is $77.32.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Walmart will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 359,616 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.25, for a total value of $28,139,952.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 603,989,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,262,194,181.50. The trade was a 0.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.64, for a total value of $2,348,559.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,873,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $312,322,993.92. This represents a 0.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 503,028 shares of company stock valued at $40,368,211 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vicus Capital grew its position in shares of Walmart by 9.9% during the 2nd quarter. Vicus Capital now owns 8,631 shares of the retailer's stock worth $584,000 after buying an additional 774 shares during the period. Oak Family Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Oak Family Advisors LLC now owns 114,045 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $7,722,000 after purchasing an additional 1,229 shares during the period. Kiley Juergens Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Kiley Juergens Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,183 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,570,000 after purchasing an additional 7,863 shares during the last quarter. GYL Financial Synergies LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 4.4% during the second quarter. GYL Financial Synergies LLC now owns 65,658 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,446,000 after purchasing an additional 2,753 shares during the period. Finally, Tevis Investment Management increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Tevis Investment Management now owns 19,083 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,292,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.