Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Given New $106.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) had its target price boosted by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $106.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the retailer’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target suggests a potential upside of 12.71% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on WMT. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Guggenheim increased their target price on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Walmart from $75.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Walmart has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $94.69.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WMT traded up $2.11 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $94.05. The company had a trading volume of 6,348,131 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,929,462. Walmart has a one year low of $53.44 and a one year high of $96.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $91.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.63. The firm has a market cap of $755.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.59, a PEG ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 0.55.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The business’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Walmart will post 2.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz acquired 5,446 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $91.81 per share, with a total value of $499,997.26. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,805 shares in the company, valued at $716,577.05. This trade represents a 230.86 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP David Chojnowski sold 5,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.45, for a total transaction of $512,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 87,404 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,993,095.80. This represents a 6.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 140,177 shares of company stock worth $12,478,149. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. DGS Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 22,381 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,022,000 after acquiring an additional 2,801 shares during the period. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC now owns 10,416 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $941,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. AM Investment Strategies LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. AM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 22,316 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,016,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Pflug Koory LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 293.5% in the fourth quarter. Pflug Koory LLC now owns 10,364 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $936,000 after purchasing an additional 7,730 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vishria Bird Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Vishria Bird Financial Group LLC now owns 6,899 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $623,000 after buying an additional 677 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Company Profile

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.