Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Earns Buy Rating from Guggenheim

Guggenheim restated their buy rating on shares of Walmart (NYSE:WMT) in a research note released on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $100.00 price target on the retailer’s stock.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on WMT. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 target price (up from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. DZ Bank lowered Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $91.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $103.07.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $96.11 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $95.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $87.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. Walmart has a 52-week low of $58.20 and a 52-week high of $105.30. The stock has a market cap of $772.10 billion, a PE ratio of 39.88, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.55.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.83 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Walmart will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total value of $2,689,601.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,785,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $349,609,579.70. This trade represents a 0.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 146,528 shares of company stock valued at $13,849,185 over the last quarter. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC grew its position in Walmart by 1,007.7% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. increased its holdings in Walmart by 77.3% in the 3rd quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.