Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Stock Price Down 0.3% - Time to Sell?

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report)'s share price traded down 0.3% on Friday . The company traded as low as $97.85 and last traded at $98.37. 2,857,313 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 14,385,902 shares. The stock had previously closed at $98.65.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Telsey Advisory Group upped their target price on Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $95.37.

Walmart Trading Up 1.5 %

The firm has a market cap of $800.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.55. The company's 50-day moving average price is $93.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $83.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. Walmart's quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.51 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.96, for a total value of $1,220,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 568,626 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $52,859,472.96. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $166,658.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares of the company's stock, valued at $41,956,404.35. This trade represents a 0.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 137,177 shares of company stock valued at $12,649,328. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 87,617,409 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $7,048,465,000 after purchasing an additional 2,786,061 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 12.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 63,135,639 shares of the retailer's stock worth $5,098,203,000 after purchasing an additional 7,200,004 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 47,659,844 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,848,533,000 after buying an additional 2,107,197 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Walmart by 3.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 41,501,782 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,392,658,000 after buying an additional 1,480,927 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Walmart by 1.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 31,236,769 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,522,369,000 after buying an additional 350,881 shares during the period. 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.