Insider Selling: Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) EVP Sells 20,000 Shares of Stock

Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) EVP John Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total value of $2,555,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 486,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,203,571.56. This represents a 3.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WMT traded down $0.10 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $127.81. The company had a trading volume of 16,414,379 shares, compared to its average volume of 35,694,551. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $79.81 and a 1 year high of $134.69. The company has a market capitalization of $1.02 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.65, a P/E/G ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 0.66. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $121.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $110.56.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.66 EPS. 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 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Walmart’s payout ratio is currently 34.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMT has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price target (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Argus raised Walmart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and issued a $147.00 target price (up from $120.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price target on Walmart from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $134.42.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AG Campbell Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $274,000. Pure Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 59,612 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,641,000 after buying an additional 3,552 shares during the last quarter. OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,114,000. SHP Wealth Management bought a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,112,000. Finally, S Harris Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $907,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

About Walmart

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.