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

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) rose 0.8% on Thursday after Evercore ISI raised their price target on the stock from $78.00 to $80.00. Evercore ISI currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Walmart traded as high as $76.22 and last traded at $75.86. Approximately 3,724,740 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 17,498,051 shares. The stock had previously closed at $75.24.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Barclays lifted their target price on Walmart from $66.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Walmart from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective 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. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $78.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.19, for a total transaction of $207,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 387,165 shares in the company, valued at $26,787,946.35. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, SVP David Chojnowski sold 8,791 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.00, for a total transaction of $597,788.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 94,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,420,220. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.19, for a total value of $207,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 387,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,787,946.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,809,366 shares of company stock worth $648,477,014 in the last quarter. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Northwest Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Walmart by 199.3% during the 1st quarter. Northwest Capital Management Inc now owns 440 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 138.3% in the 2nd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 429 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Cultivar Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $69.33 and a 200 day moving average of $63.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The company has a market capitalization of $608.98 billion, a PE ratio of 32.42, a PEG ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.50.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $169.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $168.56 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 21.72%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.61 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.