Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Trading 2.2% Higher – Still a Buy?

Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT)’s share price traded up 2.2% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $131.12 and last traded at $130.35. 17,799,112 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 32% from the average session volume of 26,362,641 shares. The stock had previously closed at $127.59.

Trending Headlines about Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS and other analysts expect Walmart to post a strong Q1, with sales growth and profit trends likely supporting another earnings beat. Walmart to Post Strong Q1, Extending Retail Lead on Sales Growth, UBS Says
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s earnings history and current setup suggest it could exceed expectations again, which is supporting bullish sentiment into the report. Walmart (WMT) Earnings Expected to Grow: What to Know Ahead of Next Week’s Release
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart continues to attract bullish technical and style-score commentary, with multiple outlets calling it a long-term momentum name. Why Walmart (WMT) is a Top Momentum Stock for the Long-Term
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that grocery and restaurant prices are rising may support Walmart’s value proposition and traffic, since consumers often trade down to lower-cost retailers during inflationary periods. Grocery and Restaurant Prices Post Biggest Jump Since 2022
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart is cutting or relocating about 1,000 corporate jobs as part of a broader restructuring and tech-focused operating simplification. The move could improve efficiency over time, but it also signals ongoing internal change. Walmart cutting or relocating about 1,000 corporate jobs
• Neutral Sentiment: Several recent articles highlighted continued restructuring and AI/technology investment, which may help long-term competitiveness but does not change the near-term earnings outlook by itself. Walmart Cuts Hundreds Of Corporate Jobs As AI-Driven Efficiency Push Accelerates: Report

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on WMT. Guggenheim upped their price target on Walmart from $120.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $137.00 price target (up from $135.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Truist Financial upped their price target on Walmart from $127.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Argus upgraded Walmart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $138.67.

Walmart Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.06 trillion, a P/E ratio of 48.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $126.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $119.06.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.66 earnings per share. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Investors of record on Friday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.2475 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.13%.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.71, for a total transaction of $2,460,201.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,023,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $509,780,812.39. This represents a 0.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total value of $1,214,600.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 108,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,153,389.24. The trade was a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 167,195 shares of company stock valued at $20,975,804 in the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Company Profile

Walmart is a multinational retail corporation that operates a broad portfolio of store formats and digital services. Its core business includes large-format supercenters, discount department stores, neighborhood grocery stores and a membership warehouse chain, Sam’s Club. The company’s merchandising mix covers groceries, household goods, apparel, electronics and pharmacy services, supplemented by private-label products and category-specific offerings. Walmart pairs its physical store network with online platforms and mobile applications to provide omnichannel shopping, fulfillment and delivery options for consumers and businesses.

The company was founded by Sam Walton, who opened the first store in Rogers, Arkansas in 1962; it is headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas.