Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Downgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

Walmart (NYSE:WMT – Get Rating) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Monday.

WMT has been the topic of a number of other reports. UBS Group dropped their price target on Walmart from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 18th. MKM Partners dropped their price target on Walmart to $159.00 and set a “na” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 18th. Raymond James dropped their price target on Walmart from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 18th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Walmart from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 18th. Finally, Cowen decreased their target price on Walmart from $175.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Monday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $157.57.

Shares of WMT stock traded up $3.40 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $122.60. The company had a trading volume of 14,387,270 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,958,253. Walmart has a 12 month low of $117.27 and a 12 month high of $160.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $143.67. The company has a market cap of $337.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.49.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 17th. The retailer reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.18). The company had revenue of $141.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $138.05 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.26% and a return on equity of 19.05%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.69 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Walmart will post 6.4 earnings per share for the current year.

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 9,708 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.78, for a total transaction of $1,308,444.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 1,167,433 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.20, for a total value of $159,004,374.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,411,690 shares of company stock valued at $193,321,410. Corporate insiders own 48.44% of the company’s stock.

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Trust Co. of Virginia VA increased its holdings in Walmart by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Trust Co. of Virginia VA now owns 14,848 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,211,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,646 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $394,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 4,802 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $715,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 3,086 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $460,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, KWB Wealth grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. KWB Wealth now owns 3,722 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $519,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 30.79% of the company’s stock.

About Walmart (Get Rating)

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; membership-only warehouse clubs; ecommerce websites, such as walmart.com, walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, and samsclub.com; and mobile commerce applications.

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