Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Trading 1% Higher on Analyst Upgrade

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report)'s stock price was up 1% during mid-day trading on Thursday after Roth Mkm raised their price target on the stock from $81.00 to $97.00. Roth Mkm currently has a buy rating on the stock. Walmart traded as high as $88.26 and last traded at $88.01. Approximately 4,785,632 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 16,790,182 shares. The stock had previously closed at $87.18.

A number of other research firms have also commented on WMT. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Walmart from $77.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Melius Research initiated coverage on Walmart in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a "buy" rating and a $95.00 target price for the company. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $91.49.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.12, for a total value of $246,360.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 378,165 shares in the company, valued at $31,054,909.80. This trade represents a 0.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 4,057,369 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.20, for a total transaction of $313,228,886.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 611,988,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,245,498,149.60. This trade represents a 0.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,337,337 shares of company stock valued at $958,823,647 over the last 90 days. 45.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,720 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,915,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 0.3% in the third quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 43,549 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,591,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the period. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 0.4% during the third quarter. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC now owns 32,633 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,635,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. CAP Partners LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. CAP Partners LLC now owns 6,054 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $489,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Investment Advisory Group LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 2.1% in the third quarter. Investment Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,182 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $499,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Trading Up 1.3 %

The company has a market capitalization of $709.94 billion, a PE ratio of 36.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $81.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $73.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The firm's revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.51 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

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.