Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Shares Down 2.8% – Should You Sell?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)’s share price traded down 2.8% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $88.91 and last traded at $89.65. 8,301,295 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 51% from the average session volume of 17,046,330 shares. The stock had previously closed at $92.24.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on WMT shares. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Walmart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Melius Research initiated coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $89.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $93.69.

Walmart Stock Down 2.5 %

The company has a market capitalization of $722.44 billion, a PE ratio of 36.91, a P/E/G ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.54. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $87.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.51 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.47, for a total value of $277,410.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 375,165 shares in the company, valued at $34,691,507.55. This trade represents a 0.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,065 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.69, for a total value of $166,624.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 457,493 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,915,110.17. This represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 143,412 shares of company stock worth $12,228,259. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 479.6% during 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 last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 12.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 63,135,639 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,098,203,000 after buying an additional 7,200,004 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 8,814.4% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 6,963,218 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $562,280,000 after acquiring an additional 6,885,106 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Walmart by 3.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 87,617,409 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,048,465,000 after acquiring an additional 2,786,061 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 4.6% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 47,659,844 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,848,533,000 after acquiring an additional 2,107,197 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

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.