Telsey Advisory Group Issues Positive Forecast for Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) had its target price boosted by Telsey Advisory Group from $105.00 to $115.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the retailer’s stock. Telsey Advisory Group’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 12.26% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on WMT. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Roth Mkm raised their price objective on Walmart from $81.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $98.56.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $102.45 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Walmart has a twelve month low of $55.85 and a twelve month high of $103.11. The company has a 50 day moving average of $94.27 and a 200-day moving average of $84.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $822.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.04, a P/E/G ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.55.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The business had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.69 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. Walmart’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Walmart will post 2.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz purchased 5,446 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $91.81 per share, with a total value of $499,997.26. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,805 shares in the company, valued at $716,577.05. This trade represents a 230.86 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.44, for a total value of $2,663,098.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,814,805 shares in the company, valued at $348,825,769.20. 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 a total of 175,177 shares of company stock worth $16,403,728 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Creative Planning lifted its stake in Walmart by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 1,800,743 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $142,973,000 after purchasing an additional 83,376 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its stake in Walmart by 0.4% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,345,293 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $431,632,000 after buying an additional 18,644 shares during the last quarter. Prospect Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Walmart during the third quarter valued at approximately $285,000. First United Bank & Trust grew its holdings in Walmart by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter. First United Bank & Trust now owns 8,555 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $691,000 after buying an additional 685 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acorn Creek Capital LLC bought a new stake in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $258,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Company Profile

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.