Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Issues Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.01 EPS

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The retailer reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.01, Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $160.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $159.65 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.23% and a return on equity of 21.47%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.50 EPS. Walmart updated its FY 2024 guidance to $6.40-$6.48 EPS and its FY24 guidance to 6.40-6.48 EPS.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock traded down $12.71 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $157.07. 12,880,331 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,854,423. Walmart has a fifty-two week low of $136.09 and a fifty-two week high of $169.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market cap of $422.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.34, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $162.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $157.76.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 9,708 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.40, for a total transaction of $1,576,579.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,461,509 shares in the company, valued at $237,349,061.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 9,708 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.40, for a total transaction of $1,576,579.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,461,509 shares in the company, valued at $237,349,061.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.37, for a total transaction of $161,370.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 169,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,390,136.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 31,166 shares of company stock worth $5,066,701. 46.51% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the first quarter worth approximately $38,000. Power Corp of Canada bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 1st quarter worth $44,000. FWL Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $52,000. KB Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Walmart during the first quarter valued at about $74,000. Finally, Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. acquired a new position in Walmart during the first quarter worth about $81,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Stephens increased their price target on Walmart from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Truist Financial increased their target price on Walmart from $166.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 18th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $173.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 18th. Roth Mkm increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $169.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 18th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $159.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.36.

Walmart Company Profile

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, and other units 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, walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, and samsclub.com; and mobile commerce applications.