Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Given New $135.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo raised its Walmart price target to $135 from $120 and maintained an “overweight” rating, implying 5.65% upside from the share price cited in the report.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: MarketBeat reports a consensus “Buy” rating and an average target of $131.90, with 3 Strong Buy, 39 Buy and 2 Hold ratings.
• Walmart’s latest reported quarter beat estimates, with EPS of $0.81 versus $0.74 expected and revenue of $187.94 billion versus $186.64 billion expected; revenue rose 5.9% year over year.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) had its price objective lifted by equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company from $120.00 to $135.00 in a research note issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "overweight" rating on the retailer's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective suggests a potential upside of 5.65% from the stock's current price.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on WMT. KeyCorp reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $135.00 price objective (down from $145.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. Guggenheim set a $130.00 target price on shares of Walmart and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Gordon Haskett boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $130.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $115.00 price target (down from $130.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $131.90.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WMT traded up $1.59 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $127.78. 4,516,705 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 24,751,146. The company has a market cap of $1.01 trillion, a PE ratio of 46.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 0.53. Walmart has a twelve month low of $98.88 and a twelve month high of $135.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $114.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $118.74.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $187.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $186.64 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.83% and a net margin of 3.00%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.68 EPS. Walmart has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.620-0.640 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.870 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Walmart will post 2.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, CTO Suresh Kumar sold 166,342 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.21, for a total transaction of $20,494,997.82. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 1,632,223 shares in the company, valued at $201,106,195.83. This represents a 9.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 5,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.00, for a total transaction of $575,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 110,432 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,699,680. This represents a 4.33% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 268,222 shares of company stock worth $31,604,051. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 188,036,646 shares of the retailer's stock worth $21,297,031,000 after buying an additional 2,107,781 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 2nd quarter valued at $7,455,131,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,905,655,000. Amundi lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 44.4% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 20,796,957 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,355,463,000 after acquiring an additional 6,393,326 shares during the period. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 54.0% during the 2nd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 18,607,297 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,107,462,000 after acquiring an additional 6,525,224 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart News Summary

Here's some of the latest news about WMT:

• Positive Sentiment: ETF purchases provide a demand signal: 34 funds reportedly added about $112.9 million of WMT shares on Nov. 10. ETFs add Walmart shares
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and Zacks research point to potential for earnings growth or a quarterly beat, supported by value pricing, digital expansion and resilient demand. Walmart is due to report third-quarter results on Nov. 19, making the release a near-term catalyst. Walmart earnings outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Walmart agreed to a record $7.8 million Pennsylvania child-labor settlement after state investigations found violations. The agreement requires stronger compliance measures and provides for higher penalties for future violations, raising oversight and reputational concerns. Walmart Pennsylvania child-labor settlement

Walmart Company Profile

Walmart is a multinational retailer that operates discount stores, supercenters, neighborhood markets, and membership warehouse clubs. Its business includes Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. The company sells groceries and a broad range of general merchandise, including apparel, electronics, household goods, and health and wellness products. Walmart also serves customers through e-commerce, with services such as order pickup and delivery. Founded by Sam Walton in 1962, Walmart is headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas.

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