Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Shares Down 0.3% - Here's What Happened

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) shares fell 0.3% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $82.32 and last traded at $82.54. 1,427,979 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 16,871,592 shares. The stock had previously closed at $82.75.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on WMT shares. KeyCorp increased their target price on Walmart from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $80.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, August 16th. Truist Financial raised shares of Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $89.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $66.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $83.83.

Walmart Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $79.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $70.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $656.89 billion, a PE ratio of 42.56, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.51.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $169.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $168.56 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 21.72%. Walmart's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.61 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.19, for a total value of $207,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 387,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,787,946.35. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.19, for a total value of $207,570.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 387,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,787,946.35. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 2,375,563 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.96, for a total transaction of $182,823,328.48. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 619,646,544 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $47,687,998,026.24. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 12,337,337 shares of company stock worth $958,784,857. Insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY lifted its position in Walmart by 173.5% during the first quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 4,791 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $288,000 after purchasing an additional 3,039 shares in the last quarter. Saratoga Research & Investment Management increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 186.8% in the first quarter. Saratoga Research & Investment Management now owns 784,747 shares of the retailer's stock worth $47,218,000 after purchasing an additional 511,086 shares in the last quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 197.1% during the 1st quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 13,632 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $820,000 after buying an additional 9,043 shares in the last quarter. First Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Walmart by 200.0% in the 1st quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 9,036 shares of the retailer's stock worth $544,000 after buying an additional 6,024 shares during the period. Finally, Meritas Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 225.5% during the first quarter. Meritas Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,526 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $453,000 after acquiring an additional 5,214 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.