Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) shares were up 0.7% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $85.06 and last traded at $85.05. Approximately 5,768,096 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 64% from the average daily volume of 15,867,379 shares. The stock had previously closed at $84.50.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research firms have commented on WMT. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Walmart from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $103.20.
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Walmart Stock Performance
The firm has a market capitalization of $706.17 billion, a PE ratio of 36.46, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $95.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $88.80.
Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $178.83 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Walmart Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart's payout ratio is 39.00%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total transaction of $1,215,375.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 566,794 shares in the company, valued at $52,485,124.40. This represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total value of $2,689,601.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,785,702 shares of the company's stock, valued at $349,609,579.70. This trade represents a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 185,777 shares of company stock valued at $17,657,316 in the last 90 days. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Institutional Trading of Walmart
A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter worth $26,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1,007.7% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
About Walmart
(
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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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