Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Stock Price Up 1.1% – Still a Buy?

by · The Markets Daily

Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT – Get Free Report)’s share price shot up 1.1% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $124.11 and last traded at $122.05. 17,213,257 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 47% from the average session volume of 32,387,627 shares. The stock had previously closed at $120.72.

Key Headlines Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on WMT shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $134.00 price target (up from $129.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, January 18th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $150.00 target price on Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Tigress Financial set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Walmart and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $120.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $135.76.

Read Our Latest Report on WMT

Walmart Stock Up 1.1%

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $124.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $113.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The company has a market capitalization of $973.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.54, a PEG ratio of 4.43 and a beta of 0.66.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The firm had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Investors of record on Friday, December 11th will be given a dividend of $0.2475 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Walmart’s payout ratio is currently 36.13%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.99, for a total transaction of $1,574,868.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 727,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $87,251,328.45. The trade was a 1.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.27, for a total transaction of $2,445,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 506,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $61,962,034.28. This represents a 3.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 274,278 shares of company stock worth $33,605,809 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP bought a new stake in Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP bought a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Walmart

(Get Free Report)

Walmart is a multinational retail corporation that operates a broad portfolio of store formats and digital services. Its core business includes large-format supercenters, discount department stores, neighborhood grocery stores and a membership warehouse chain, Sam’s Club. The company’s merchandising mix covers groceries, household goods, apparel, electronics and pharmacy services, supplemented by private-label products and category-specific offerings. Walmart pairs its physical store network with online platforms and mobile applications to provide omnichannel shopping, fulfillment and delivery options for consumers and businesses.

The company was founded by Sam Walton, who opened the first store in Rogers, Arkansas in 1962; it is headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas.

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