Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Trading Down 1.1% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Walmart shares fell by 1.1% to $101.97, with a trading volume decline of 14% compared to the average session.
• Analysts have a consensus target price of $112.38 for Walmart, with 29 analysts rating it as a "Buy".
• Insider selling was noted, with CTO Suresh Kumar selling 30,000 shares valued at over $3 million and EVP Kathryn J. Mclay selling 4,000 shares for over $415,000.

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) shares traded down 1.1% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $100.55 and last traded at $101.97. 16,061,292 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 14% from the average session volume of 18,711,217 shares. The stock had previously closed at $103.06.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WMT. Mizuho restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Evercore ISI restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $110.00 target price (up previously from $108.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, August 18th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Walmart from $111.00 to $109.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Erste Group Bank upgraded Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price objective (up from $112.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, August 18th. Twenty-nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $112.38.

Walmart Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $100.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $96.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $812.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.33, a PEG ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 0.65.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 21st. The retailer reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.06). Walmart had a net margin of 3.08% and a return on equity of 21.45%. The firm had revenue of $169.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.67 EPS. The business's revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.580-0.600 EPS. FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.620 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CTO Suresh Kumar sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.47, for a total value of $3,104,100.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 1,787,200 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $184,921,584. This represents a 1.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.83, for a total transaction of $415,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 1,048,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $108,861,082.65. This represents a 0.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 149,032 shares of company stock worth $14,860,951 in the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WMT. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 397,264.9% during the second quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC now owns 104,514,912 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $10,496,702,000 after acquiring an additional 104,488,610 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Walmart in the second quarter valued at $5,367,770,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the first quarter valued at $2,532,331,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 9,648.7% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,486,374 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,123,138,000 after buying an additional 11,368,549 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Walmart by 30.1% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 33,292,749 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,922,770,000 after buying an additional 7,706,201 shares during the period. 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.

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