Walmart’s (WMT) “Outperform” Rating Reaffirmed at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada restated their outperform rating on shares of Walmart (NYSE:WMT) in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $168.00 price target on the retailer’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Tuesday, August 8th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $175.00 to $177.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Friday, September 8th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, October 5th. They issued a strong-buy rating on the stock. HSBC initiated coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, September 22nd. They issued a buy rating and a $200.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $174.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Monday, August 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $179.00.

Walmart Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE WMT opened at $155.30 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Walmart has a 52 week low of $136.09 and a 52 week high of $169.94. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $162.03 and its 200 day moving average is $157.90. The company has a market cap of $418.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.75, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.53.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 16th. The retailer reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.53. Walmart had a net margin of 2.55% and a return on equity of 21.20%. The company had revenue of $160.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $159.65 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Walmart will post 6.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.50, for a total value of $159,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 168,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,913,232.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.50, for a total value of $159,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 168,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,913,232.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 4,375 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.00, for a total value of $708,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 269,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,597,278. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 31,166 shares of company stock valued at $5,066,701. 46.51% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 7.8% during the 2nd quarter. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,071 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $326,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,651 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $10,476,000 after acquiring an additional 858 shares in the last quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 51,561 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,104,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. WJ Interests LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $247,000. Finally, Legacy Capital Group California Inc. increased its holdings in Walmart by 15.0% in the 2nd quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 7,065 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,111,000 after acquiring an additional 924 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.18% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Company Profile

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, and other units 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, walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, and samsclub.com; and mobile commerce applications.