Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Shares Gap Down on Insider Selling

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock had previously closed at $104.00, but opened at $98.78. Walmart shares last traded at $97.78, with a volume of 22,147,910 shares trading hands.

Specifically, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction 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 trade represents a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.43.

Walmart Trading Down 2.6 %

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $95.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $86.44. The company has a market cap of $760.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. Research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.44%.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Swedbank AB boosted its holdings in Walmart by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,345,293 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $431,632,000 after purchasing an additional 18,644 shares during the period. X Square Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. X Square Capital LLC now owns 34,460 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,783,000 after purchasing an additional 1,032 shares during the period. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,082,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Walmart by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 101,000 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,156,000 after purchasing an additional 10,006 shares during the period. Finally, Beese Fulmer Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Beese Fulmer Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,430 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,811,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by 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.