Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Price Target Cut to $91.00 by Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) had its price target lowered by Stifel Nicolaus from $93.00 to $91.00 in a report issued on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a hold rating on the retailer’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup reissued a “positive” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target (up previously from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Three 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.43.

Walmart Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of WMT stock traded down $0.56 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $89.04. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 12,464,099 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,485,532. The company has a market cap of $713.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Walmart has a one year low of $58.56 and a one year high of $105.30. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $92.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $89.73.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. Analysts anticipate that Walmart will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.96, for a total value of $1,220,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 568,626 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,859,472.96. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total value of $166,384.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,049,852.03. This represents a 0.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 178,852 shares of company stock valued at $16,785,080 over the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. World Investment Advisors lifted its stake in Walmart by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 271,515 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $24,532,000 after acquiring an additional 19,233 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. lifted its stake in Walmart by 209.7% in the 4th quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $79,960,000 after purchasing an additional 599,257 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire raised its stake in Walmart by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,332,000 after purchasing an additional 5,786 shares in the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Walmart by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 203,150 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $18,355,000 after purchasing an additional 9,292 shares during the period. Finally, Iowa State Bank increased its position in Walmart by 213.8% during the fourth quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 26,807 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,422,000 after acquiring an additional 18,263 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by 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.