Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Shares Up 0.8% on Analyst Upgrade

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) shares were up 0.8% during mid-day trading on Monday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $97.00 to $112.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Walmart traded as high as $102.33 and last traded at $101.96. Approximately 3,798,655 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 74% from the average daily volume of 14,690,576 shares. The stock had previously closed at $101.15.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on WMT. DZ Bank lowered shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $91.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.95.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,419,362.80. The trade was a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz purchased 5,446 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $91.81 per share, for a total transaction of $499,997.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $716,577.05. This trade represents a 230.86 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 175,177 shares of company stock valued at $16,403,728 over the last three months. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WMT. Madison Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $242,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,258,000. Impact Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at $985,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 2,830,529 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $255,738,000 after buying an additional 30,778 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DecisionMap Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $860,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Up 0.7 %

The company has a market capitalization of $817.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $94.07 and its 200-day moving average is $84.36.

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

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.