Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Down 1.5% Following Insider Selling

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)’s stock price was down 1.5% on Friday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $91.31 and last traded at $91.40. Approximately 2,627,537 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 17,006,006 shares. The stock had previously closed at $92.79.

Specifically, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total transaction of $2,689,601.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,785,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $349,609,579.70. The trade was a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total transaction of $1,215,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 566,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,485,124.40. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group raised their target price on Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $83.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Melius Research began coverage on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $78.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $93.69.

Walmart Trading Down 1.2 %

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 firm has a market cap of $736.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.62, a P/E/G ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $88.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $78.90.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 77.3% in the 3rd quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Hoese & Co LLP bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently 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.