Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT)

Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) was the target of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders bought 267,098 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 99% compared to the typical volume of 134,432 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on WMT shares. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective (down from $140.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, August 21st. Citigroup reduced their target price on Walmart from $147.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 21st. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, August 21st. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $126.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Walmart from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.74.

Walmart Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WMT traded up $1.67 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $106.74. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 8,186,002 shares, compared to its average volume of 25,240,744. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market cap of $846.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.57, a PEG ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 0.58. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $108.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $116.75. Walmart has a 12-month low of $98.88 and a 12-month high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.07. Walmart had a net margin of 3.00% and a return on equity of 21.83%. The firm had revenue of $187.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $186.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.68 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.620-0.640 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.870 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Walmart will post 2.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Daniel Bartlett sold 3,990 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.41, for a total value of $416,595.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 618,359 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,562,863.19. This trade represents a 0.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Christopher Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.65, for a total value of $309,285.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 566,253 shares in the company, valued at $60,390,882.45. This trade represents a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 81,219 shares of company stock worth $8,604,429. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton raised its position in Walmart by 2.9% in the third quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 11,421 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,187,000 after acquiring an additional 318 shares during the period. Olistico Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 16.3% in the 3rd quarter. Olistico Wealth LLC now owns 13,782 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,432,000 after purchasing an additional 1,929 shares in the last quarter. Park National Corp OH raised its holdings in Walmart by 282.9% in the 3rd quarter. Park National Corp OH now owns 119,865 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $12,456,000 after purchasing an additional 88,562 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Walmart by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 716,949 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $74,505,000 after purchasing an additional 7,189 shares during the period. Finally, CapWealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 9.3% during the third quarter. CapWealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,549 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $888,000 after purchasing an additional 725 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Company Profile

Walmart Inc (NASDAQ: WMT) is a multinational retailer that operates supercenters, discount stores, neighborhood markets, warehouse clubs and e-commerce platforms. Its merchandise includes groceries, apparel, electronics, home goods, health and wellness products, household essentials and general merchandise. Walmart also provides services such as grocery pickup and delivery, pharmacy services, financial products and digital advertising.

The company serves customers through its Walmart U.S., Walmart International and Sam’s Club segments.