Robert W. Baird Issues Positive Forecast for Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) had its target price lifted by Robert W. Baird from $100.00 to $115.00 in a research note released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the retailer’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $115.00 target price (up from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group upped their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $101.87.

Walmart Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $103.73 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $95.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $85.80. Walmart has a 12-month low of $57.60 and a 12-month high of $105.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $833.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.57, a PEG ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.55.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.51 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Walmart will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total transaction of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,419,362.80. This represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz purchased 5,446 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $91.81 per share, for a total transaction of $499,997.26. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 7,805 shares in the company, valued at $716,577.05. The trade was a 230.86 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 175,177 shares of company stock valued at $16,403,728 over the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WMT. Whelan Financial grew its holdings in Walmart by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 4,339 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.7% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC increased its position in Walmart by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC now owns 3,431 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $310,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $924,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 15,685 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,417,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.