Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Shares Up 4.1% - Should You Buy?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 4.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $86.24 and last traded at $85.15. Approximately 12,947,279 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 25% from the average daily volume of 17,340,448 shares. The stock had previously closed at $81.79.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Walmart from $107.00 to $102.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Erste Group Bank cut Walmart from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $103.58.

Walmart Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $744.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $92.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $89.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. On average, analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.62, for a total transaction of $2,697,464.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,766,491 shares of the company's stock, valued at $348,852,396.42. This represents a 0.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.96, for a total transaction of $1,220,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 568,626 shares in the company, valued at $52,859,472.96. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 178,852 shares of company stock valued at $16,785,080. Insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. World Investment Advisors raised its stake in Walmart by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 271,515 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $24,532,000 after acquiring an additional 19,233 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 209.7% in the fourth quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer's stock worth $79,960,000 after purchasing an additional 599,257 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire raised its position in shares of Walmart by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $4,332,000 after purchasing an additional 5,786 shares during the period. Modera Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 203,150 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $18,355,000 after buying an additional 9,292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Iowa State Bank lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 213.8% during the 4th quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 26,807 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,422,000 after buying an additional 18,263 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.