Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Up 1.6% - Here's What Happened

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) rose 1.6% on Monday . The company traded as high as $86.63 and last traded at $86.55. Approximately 6,808,691 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 60% from the average daily volume of 16,873,539 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.15.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on WMT. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp upped their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Roth Mkm reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $108.00 price target (up previously from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Erste Group Bank cut Walmart from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $103.17.

Walmart Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $698.23 billion, a PE ratio of 36.14, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm's 50 day moving average is $94.38 and its 200-day moving average is $89.52.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. On average, research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

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. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,049,852.03. This represents a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total value of $343,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares of the company's stock, valued at $76,350,158.55. The trade was a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 176,652 shares of company stock valued at $16,590,028 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Walmart by 14.9% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,235,504 shares of the retailer's stock worth $503,517,000 after acquiring an additional 809,352 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth about $270,000. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,828,000. Mission Creek Capital Partners Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.6% in the third quarter. Mission Creek Capital Partners Inc. now owns 35,280 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,849,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Polymer Capital Management HK LTD purchased a new stake in Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $787,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Walmart

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.