Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Up 1.3% - Should You Buy?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) traded up 1.3% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $89.11 and last traded at $88.90. 6,727,062 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 67% from the average session volume of 20,173,061 shares. The stock had previously closed at $87.79.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on WMT. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Walmart from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Walmart from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $103.17.

Walmart Stock Performance

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 company has a market cap of $666.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.48, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $89.50.

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Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company 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 $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart's payout ratio is 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.66, for a total value of $195,052.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 398,024 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,288,807.84. The trade was a 0.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 460,705 shares in the company, valued at $41,956,404.35. This trade represents a 0.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 178,852 shares of company stock worth $16,785,080 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Walmart by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 422,736,888 shares of the retailer's stock worth $38,194,278,000 after acquiring an additional 2,050,683 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 90,635,238 shares of the retailer's stock worth $8,167,186,000 after purchasing an additional 3,017,829 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $5,737,355,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 48,793,045 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,408,452,000 after purchasing an additional 1,133,201 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Walmart by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,641,936 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,943,049,000 after buying an additional 3,550,037 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

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.