Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Down 0.9%

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) traded down 0.9% on Friday . The company traded as low as $68.83 and last traded at $69.37. 4,198,633 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 17,285,344 shares. The stock had previously closed at $70.02.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on WMT. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Walmart from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $71.60.

Walmart Stock Down 0.2 %

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $67.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $61.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $562.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.07 and a beta of 0.50.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $161.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $159.57 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 2.88%. Walmart’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.82, for a total value of $1,944,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 144,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,386,389.74. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Walmart news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.82, for a total value of $1,944,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 144,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,386,389.74. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP David Chojnowski sold 8,791 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.00, for a total transaction of $597,788.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 94,415 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,420,220. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,498,614 shares of company stock worth $951,441,747. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WMT. Atomi Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Walmart by 26.6% during the 2nd quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 49,136 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,327,000 after purchasing an additional 10,334 shares in the last quarter. Aspen Investment Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Aspen Investment Management Inc now owns 44,070 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,984,000 after purchasing an additional 503 shares during the period. Dearborn Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 942.7% during the 2nd quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 505,527 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $34,229,000 after purchasing an additional 457,045 shares in the last quarter. Saxony Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart during the second quarter worth approximately $330,000. Finally, Latitude Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 5.9% in the second quarter. Latitude Advisors LLC now owns 4,143 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $281,000 after buying an additional 231 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.