Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Down 1.5% Following Insider Selling

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) fell 1.5% during mid-day trading on Friday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $95.12 and last traded at $95.78. 10,845,730 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 33% from the average session volume of 16,160,107 shares. The stock had previously closed at $97.21.

Specifically, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total value of $166,384.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,049,852.03. This represents a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 target price (up from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.03.

Walmart Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $95.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $86.25. 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 company has a market cap of $768.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.27, a P/E/G ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.55.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. On average, research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be given a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. This is a positive change from Walmart’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.02%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whelan Financial grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 4,339 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $392,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,937 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $538,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC now owns 3,431 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $310,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Walmart by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $924,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC raised its position in Walmart by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 15,685 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,417,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.