Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Given Average Rating of “Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) have received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the thirty-one ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $103.20.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WMT. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $108.00 price objective (up from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. DZ Bank raised Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $115.00 price target (up previously from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, February 13th.

Walmart Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $84.36 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $677.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.00, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Walmart has a 52-week low of $58.56 and a 52-week high of $105.30. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $95.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $88.56.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Walmart will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. Walmart’s payout ratio is 39.00%.

Insider Activity

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,419,362.80. This represents a 12.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.15, for a total value of $1,261,968.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,672 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,293,612.80. The trade was a 2.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 185,777 shares of company stock worth $17,657,316. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Northstar Financial Companies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $467,000. Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Walmart by 93.5% in the fourth quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 99,793 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $9,016,000 after acquiring an additional 48,226 shares in the last quarter. Wealthedge Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth approximately $461,000. Anchor Pointe Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth approximately $535,000. Finally, Elite Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth approximately $327,000. 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.