Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Upgraded to “Buy” at Erste Group Bank

Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Walmart (NYSE:WMT) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $103.00 target price (up previously from $102.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, June 9th. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on Walmart from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Mizuho raised their price objective on Walmart from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, May 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $106.67.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE WMT opened at $99.21 on Tuesday. Walmart has a 1-year low of $66.67 and a 1-year high of $105.30. The company has a market capitalization of $791.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.40, a PEG ratio of 4.79 and a beta of 0.66. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $96.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $95.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.53 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.76% and a net margin of 2.75%. Walmart’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.60 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Walmart will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.44, for a total value of $216,568.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 628,318 shares in the company, valued at $61,851,623.92. The trade was a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.85, for a total transaction of $1,258,031.25. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 945,434 shares in the company, valued at $90,619,848.90. The trade was a 1.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 146,112 shares of company stock valued at $14,080,073 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Whelan Financial grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 4,339 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $392,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. boosted its position in Walmart by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 25,915 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,275,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,830 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $961,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Scott & Selber Inc. boosted its position in Walmart by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Scott & Selber Inc. now owns 2,920 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,794 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $684,000 after buying an additional 105 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.