Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Up 0.4% - Time to Buy?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report)'s share price rose 0.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $96.00 and last traded at $95.52. Approximately 3,155,036 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 17,772,729 shares. The stock had previously closed at $95.09.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on WMT. Truist Financial raised their target price on Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Walmart from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Walmart from $110.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their target price on Walmart from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $103.58.

Walmart Stock Down 0.2 %

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 firm has a market cap of $760.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.39, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $90.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $90.91.

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

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. Walmart's payout ratio is 39.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.95, for a total value of $2,823,571.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,558,247 shares in the company, valued at $344,972,046.65. This represents a 0.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $76,350,158.55. The trade was a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 140,533 shares of company stock worth $13,241,740. 45.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Horizon Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 9,006.9% during the 1st quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 26,228 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,303,000 after purchasing an additional 25,940 shares during the period. American Capital Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC now owns 14,965 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,314,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Krane Funds Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Walmart in the first quarter valued at approximately $252,000. Kanawha Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 60,130 shares of the retailer's stock worth $5,279,000 after purchasing an additional 2,442 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 66,244 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $5,816,000 after acquiring an additional 841 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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