Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Trading Down 1.5% - What's Next?

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) fell 1.5% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $85.91 and last traded at $86.12. 3,910,020 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 15,823,214 shares. The stock had previously closed at $87.46.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on WMT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. DZ Bank raised shares of Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $110.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Tigress Financial boosted 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. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $103.17.

Walmart Stock Up 0.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $688.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.66, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a fifty day moving average of $95.34 and a 200 day moving average of $88.89.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total value of $343,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 888,309 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $76,350,158.55. This trade represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction of $166,384.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,049,852.03. The trade was a 0.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 189,777 shares of company stock worth $18,001,116 in the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Swedbank AB grew its holdings in Walmart by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,345,293 shares of the retailer's stock worth $431,632,000 after acquiring an additional 18,644 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 14.9% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,235,504 shares of the retailer's stock worth $503,517,000 after purchasing an additional 809,352 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in Walmart in the third quarter valued at $336,000. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the third quarter valued at $14,511,000. Finally, Howe & Rusling Inc. lifted its holdings in Walmart by 48.0% during the 3rd quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 6,241 shares of the retailer's stock worth $504,000 after buying an additional 2,023 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.