Evercore ISI Increases Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Price Target to $70.00

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) had its price target hoisted by Evercore ISI from $67.00 to $70.00 in a research note published on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the retailer’s stock.

WMT has been the subject of a number of other research reports. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Walmart from $69.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Walmart from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Walmart from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Walmart from $67.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Walmart from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $68.01.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $64.85 on Monday. Walmart has a 52-week low of $48.34 and a 52-week high of $65.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The company has a market capitalization of $522.56 billion, a PE ratio of 27.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.49. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $60.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $56.77.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.08. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 2.88%. The business had revenue of $161.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $159.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.49 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Walmart will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a $0.2075 dividend. This represents a $0.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Walmart’s payout ratio is 35.52%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.82, for a total transaction of $1,944,600.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 144,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,386,389.74. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Walmart news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.82, for a total value of $1,944,600.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 144,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,386,389.74. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.78, for a total value of $117,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 656,395,261 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,582,913,441.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 6,077,748 shares of company stock valued at $378,469,027. 46.51% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WMT. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 122.7% in the 3rd quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 45,611 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,295,000 after purchasing an additional 25,127 shares during the period. Compass Ion Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 128.0% during the 3rd quarter. Compass Ion Advisors LLC now owns 4,026 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $644,000 after acquiring an additional 2,260 shares during the period. Advisor OS LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 3,901 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $624,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Walmart by 17.7% during the 3rd quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 9,141 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,462,000 after purchasing an additional 1,374 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC grew its position in Walmart by 9.5% in the third quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 11,171 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,787,000 after acquiring an additional 966 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.