Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Shares Down 0.2%

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) was down 0.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $60.37 and last traded at $60.59. Approximately 2,284,721 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 20,198,746 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.72.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on WMT. Stifel Europe lifted their target price on Walmart from $56.33 to $58.33 in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $68.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “hold” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Walmart from $54.33 to $58.67 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 19th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $61.60.

Walmart Trading Down 0.9 %

The firm has a market cap of $484.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 0.49. The business’s 50-day moving average is $58.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.24.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.05. Walmart had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 21.08%. The company had revenue of $173.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $170.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.57 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.2075 per share. This represents a $0.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 2,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.78, for a total value of $117,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 656,395,261 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,582,913,441.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.54, for a total transaction of $1,559,298.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,274,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $228,855,391.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 2,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.78, for a total transaction of $117,560.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 656,395,261 shares in the company, valued at $38,582,913,441.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 36,208,259 shares of company stock worth $2,073,465,662 in the last quarter. 46.51% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WMT. Kozak & Associates Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 1,490.0% in the 3rd quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 159 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Able Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

About Walmart

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, and other units 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, walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, and samsclub.com; and mobile commerce applications.