Walmart Shares Rise 0.4% Following Analyst Upgrade

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) experienced a 0.4% increase in its stock price on Tuesday after Evercore ISI upgraded its price target from $82.00 to $85.00, maintaining an outperform rating on the stock. Walmart shares reached a high of $81.44 during the day and closed at $81.10. In mid-day trading, approximately 2,195,765 shares changed hands, reflecting a significant decrease of 87% compared to the average daily trading volume of 17,024,691 shares. The stock had previously ended the last trading session at $80.81.

Analyst Opinions

Several other analysts have also recently revised their outlook on Walmart. Guggenheim increased its price target from $75.00 to $81.00 and assigned a "buy" rating on August 16th. Roth MKM similarly raised its price target from $71.00 to $81.00 on the same day, maintaining a buy rating. BMO Capital Markets kept its outperform rating while setting a target of $80.00, also on August 16th. Additionally, Morgan Stanley lifted its price target from $75.00 to $82.00, providing an "overweight" rating on the stock. Redburn Atlantic elevated Walmart's rating to a "strong buy" on September 23rd. Overall, one analyst rates the stock as a hold, while twenty-nine have given it a buy rating and two have issued strong buy ratings. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart holds a consensus rating of "Buy" with an average price target of $83.51.

Insider Transactions

In recent insider trading news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,065 shares of Walmart on October 15th at an average price of $80.69, totaling approximately $166,624.85. After the sale, Bartlett retains 457,493 shares valued at over $36.9 million. Additionally, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 2,709,163 shares on September 3rd for around $209.6 million and now holds about 630.5 million shares valued at nearly $48.8 billion. Over the last three months, insiders have sold a total of 12,337,337 shares amounting to $958.3 million, indicating that 45.58% of Walmart's stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Interests

Recent changes in institutional holdings show that several hedge funds have adjusted their positions in Walmart. For instance, Vanguard Group Inc. ramped up its stake by 199.4% in the first quarter, now owning approximately 411.7 million shares worth nearly $24.8 billion after acquiring an additional 274.2 million shares. Price T. Rowe Associates increased its stake by 181.0% to own about 56.9 million shares valued at $3.4 billion. Swiss National Bank also boosted its stake by 187.4%, now holding around 13.3 million shares valued at $800.5 million. Other notable increases include Canada Pension Plan Investment Board with a 284.0% increase and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings with a 184.1% increase. Now, institutional investors and hedge funds collectively hold 26.76% of Walmart's stock.

Financial Metrics

Walmart's financial ratios indicate a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, with a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The company's 50-day simple moving average stands at $78.14 while the 200-day average is $69.83. Walmart boasts a market capitalization of about $660.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.71, a PEG ratio of 4.07, and a beta of 0.51.

Recent Earnings Report

Walmart last reported its quarterly earnings results on August 15th, revealing earnings per share (EPS) of $0.67, which surpassed analysts' expectations of $0.65. The retailer achieved a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 2.34%. The quarterly revenue came in at $169.30 billion, exceeding the forecast of $168.56 billion and marking a year-over-year increase of 4.7%. Analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will report an EPS of 2.44 for the current fiscal year.

About Walmart

Walmart Inc. operates across multiple retail segments, including Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. The company features an extensive range of stores, from supercenters and supermarkets to eCommerce platforms, providing a wide variety of goods and services to customers across the globe.

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