Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Down 0.6% After Insider Selling

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)’s stock price was down 0.6% during trading on Friday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $59.14 and last traded at $59.34. Approximately 2,690,783 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 18,464,428 shares. The stock had previously closed at $59.71.

Specifically, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.93, for a total transaction of $1,687,250.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 4,076,892 shares in the company, valued at $236,187,943.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Walmart news, Director S Robson Walton sold 5,816,175 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.95, for a total value of $337,066,728.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 677,052,654 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,237,458,141.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.93, for a total transaction of $1,687,250.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 4,076,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $236,187,943.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 29,019,140 shares of company stock valued at $1,696,045,631. Corporate insiders own 46.51% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on WMT. StockNews.com upgraded Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Walmart to $67.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 26th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $62.00 to $63.33 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.75.

Walmart Stock Up 0.2 %

The company has a market cap of $482.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.26, a P/E/G ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.49. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $60.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $55.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.83.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.2075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Walmart’s payout ratio is 43.38%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SeaTown Holdings Pte. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Walmart by 26.6% during the 3rd quarter. SeaTown Holdings Pte. Ltd. now owns 252,600 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $40,398,000 after purchasing an additional 53,000 shares during the period. Railway Pension Investments Ltd increased its position in shares of Walmart by 28.0% during the third quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd now owns 767,013 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $122,668,000 after acquiring an additional 167,800 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,480,971 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $235,608,000 after buying an additional 21,899 shares during the period. Capital Wealth Planning LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 32.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 2,117,190 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $338,602,000 after acquiring an additional 518,896 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. increased its holdings in Walmart by 0.7% during the third quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 48,468 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,751,000 after buying an additional 325 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.