Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Shares Down 1.5%

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) shares were down 1.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $67.10 and last traded at $67.45. Approximately 6,097,679 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 65% from the average daily volume of 17,300,340 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.46.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on WMT shares. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $63.33 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. HSBC boosted their price target on Walmart from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Walmart from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. StockNews.com downgraded Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on Walmart from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $71.60.

Walmart Stock Down 1.8 %

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $68.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.41. The company has a market cap of $540.85 billion, a PE ratio of 28.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $161.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $159.57 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 2.88%. Walmart’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 3,633,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.80, for a total value of $242,737,840.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 636,898,811 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,544,840,574.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 3,633,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.80, for a total transaction of $242,737,840.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 636,898,811 shares in the company, valued at $42,544,840,574.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.61, for a total value of $2,056,445.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,931,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $277,589,163.61. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,537,863 shares of company stock valued at $954,247,577 over the last quarter. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. AHL Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 192.1% in the 1st quarter. AHL Investment Management Inc. now owns 24,000 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,444,000 after purchasing an additional 15,785 shares in the last quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. grew its stake in Walmart by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. now owns 7,816 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,232,000 after buying an additional 315 shares during the period. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 38.9% in the 4th quarter. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,501 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $237,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the period. Liberty Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart during the 1st quarter worth $270,000. Finally, Commerce Bank increased its holdings in Walmart by 189.4% in the 1st quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 917,625 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $55,213,000 after purchasing an additional 600,521 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.