Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Down 1.3% on Insider Selling

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report)'s share price was down 1.3% during trading on Tuesday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $59.16 and last traded at $59.46. Approximately 3,086,475 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 18,563,338 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.24.

Specifically, SVP David Chojnowski sold 10,950 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.33, for a total transaction of $638,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 104,346 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,086,850. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Walmart news, SVP David Chojnowski sold 10,950 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.33, for a total transaction of $638,750.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 104,346 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,086,850. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.93, for a total value of $1,687,250.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 4,076,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $236,187,943.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 29,019,140 shares of company stock worth $1,696,035,551 in the last quarter. Insiders own 46.51% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WMT shares. Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of Walmart to $67.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Walmart from $54.33 to $58.67 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 19th. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $62.00 to $63.33 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Walmart from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $61.75.

Walmart Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.83. The firm's 50 day moving average is $59.99 and its 200-day moving average is $55.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $478.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.00, a PEG ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.49.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $173.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $170.85 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 21.08%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.57 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.2075 dividend. This represents a $0.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.38%.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Partnership Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Able Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

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.