Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Trading Up 0.8% Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) traded up 0.8% during trading on Monday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $97.00 to $112.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Walmart traded as high as $102.33 and last traded at $101.96. 3,798,655 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 14,690,576 shares. The stock had previously closed at $101.15.

WMT has been the topic of several other reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Roth Mkm upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $83.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $96.95.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $166,658.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 460,705 shares in the company, valued at $41,956,404.35. This trade represents a 0.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, 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 transaction of $3,754,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,419,362.80. This trade represents a 12.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale 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. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WMT. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter worth $2,306,627,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 479.6% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 18,479,259 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,492,200,000 after purchasing an additional 15,290,936 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its position in Walmart by 12.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 63,135,639 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,098,203,000 after purchasing an additional 7,200,004 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Walmart by 8,814.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 6,963,218 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $562,280,000 after purchasing an additional 6,885,106 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Walmart by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 32,020,800 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,893,079,000 after purchasing an additional 3,927,173 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Trading Up 1.6 %

The stock has a market cap of $825.62 billion, a PE ratio of 42.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.55. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $94.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $84.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.85.

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

Walmart Company Profile

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.