Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-nine brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twenty-eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $80.19.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WMT. StockNews.com raised shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Walmart from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Walmart from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $74.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.61, for a total value of $2,056,445.64. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,931,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $277,589,163.61. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 25,578 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.58, for a total transaction of $1,728,561.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 390,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,367,350.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.61, for a total value of $2,056,445.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,931,301 shares in the company, valued at $277,589,163.61. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,317,999 shares of company stock valued at $956,341,379. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Landmark Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Landmark Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,055 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,112,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Syverson Strege & Co increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 3,377 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $532,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Amussen Hunsaker Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Amussen Hunsaker Associates LLC now owns 15,979 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,519,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Per Stirling Capital Management LLC. boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Per Stirling Capital Management LLC. now owns 4,009 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $632,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Walmart by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,166 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $975,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Walmart stock opened at $79.91 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $642.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.98, a PEG ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $74.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $67.26. Walmart has a 52 week low of $49.85 and a 52 week high of $81.60.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 2.34%. The company had revenue of $169.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $168.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. Walmart’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Walmart will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.