Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Trading 1.3% Higher – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) were up 1.3% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $115.72 and last traded at $115.06. Approximately 22,511,641 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 21% from the average daily volume of 18,646,246 shares. The stock had previously closed at $113.56.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $122.00 target price (up from $118.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, November 21st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Walmart from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Walmart from $110.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $123.00 price objective (up from $111.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, November 21st. Thirty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $119.31.

Walmart Stock Up 1.3%

The firm has a market cap of $917.05 billion, a PE ratio of 40.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.32 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $101.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.24.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The retailer reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.31% and a net margin of 3.26%.The firm had revenue of $179.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $175.15 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.58 EPS. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Walmart has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.580-2.630 EPS. Analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.78, for a total value of $1,414,612.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 892,940 shares in the company, valued at $96,241,073.20. This represents a 1.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CTO Suresh Kumar sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.47, for a total transaction of $3,104,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 1,787,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $184,921,584. This trade represents a 1.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 158,013 shares of company stock worth $16,657,847 over the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Collier Financial bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Operose Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 319.7% during the 1st quarter. Operose Advisors LLC now owns 319 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP purchased a new position in Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

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.