Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Stock Price Down 2.4% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Walmart shares fell 2.4% on Wednesday, trading as low as $117.45 before last changing hands at $118.13, below the prior close of $121.03.
• Despite the dip, analysts remain mostly positive on the stock: Walmart holds a Moderate Buy consensus rating, with 31 Buy ratings and a consensus price target of $138.85.
• The company recently posted solid quarterly results, with EPS of $0.66 matching estimates and revenue of $177.75 billion topping expectations, while insiders have also been selling shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report)'s stock price fell 2.4% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $117.45 and last traded at $118.13. 21,645,436 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 17% from the average session volume of 26,101,914 shares. The stock had previously closed at $121.03.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WMT. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, June 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, June 8th. Argus raised shares of Walmart to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on shares of Walmart from $147.00 to $146.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $138.85.

Walmart Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $940.09 billion, a PE ratio of 41.45, a P/E/G ratio of 4.51 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The business's fifty day moving average price is $125.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $121.96.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66. Walmart had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 21.25%. The firm had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.61 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 0.720-0.740 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP David W. Guggina sold 11,978 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.82, for a total value of $1,435,203.96. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 125,067 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,985,527.94. This represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.92, for a total transaction of $359,368.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 577,853 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,607,543.76. The trade was a 0.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 128,986 shares of company stock valued at $15,927,908. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. S&A Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the first quarter worth approximately $683,000. E Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 5.3% in the first quarter. E Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,321 shares of the retailer's stock worth $413,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Curry Webb Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the first quarter worth approximately $346,000. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. increased its position in shares of Walmart by 1.3% in the first quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 95,876 shares of the retailer's stock worth $11,915,000 after purchasing an additional 1,239 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evansbrook LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 2.2% in the first quarter. Evansbrook LLC now owns 14,410 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,791,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Walmart

Walmart is a multinational retail corporation that operates a broad portfolio of store formats and digital services. Its core business includes large-format supercenters, discount department stores, neighborhood grocery stores and a membership warehouse chain, Sam’s Club. The company’s merchandising mix covers groceries, household goods, apparel, electronics and pharmacy services, supplemented by private-label products and category-specific offerings. Walmart pairs its physical store network with online platforms and mobile applications to provide omnichannel shopping, fulfillment and delivery options for consumers and businesses.

The company was founded by Sam Walton, who opened the first store in Rogers, Arkansas in 1962; it is headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas.

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