Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Trading Down 2.8% – Time to Sell?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) dropped 2.8% on Monday . The company traded as low as $88.91 and last traded at $89.65. Approximately 8,301,295 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 51% from the average daily volume of 17,046,330 shares. The stock had previously closed at $92.24.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on WMT. Truist Financial upped their target price on Walmart from $89.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Tigress Financial increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. StockNews.com cut Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $93.69.

Walmart Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $87.51 and a 200 day moving average of $78.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $722.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.91, a PEG ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.54.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The firm had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.51 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,065 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.69, for a total value of $166,624.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 457,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,915,110.17. The trade was a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.47, for a total value of $277,410.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 375,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,691,507.55. This trade represents a 0.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 143,412 shares of company stock valued at $12,228,259. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth $26,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. lifted 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 buying an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Hoese & Co LLP acquired a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth about $37,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.