The stock of Walmart Inc (NYSE: WMT) has increased by 0.08 when compared to last closing price of 60.09.Despite this, the company has seen a gain of 0.48% in its stock price over the last five trading days. The Motley Fool reported 2024-04-13 that Walmart had a great holiday season. Profit margins are rising but are still well below the records that investors have seen.
Is It Worth Investing in Walmart Inc (NYSE: WMT) Right Now?
The price-to-earnings ratio for Walmart Inc (NYSE: WMT) is 31.43x, which is above its average ratio. Moreover, the 36-month beta value for WMT is 0.49. Analysts have varying opinions on the stock, with 7 analysts rating it as a “buy,” 8 as “overweight,” 15 as “hold,” and 1 as “sell.”
The public float for WMT is 4.32B and currently, short sellers hold a 0.86% of that float. On April 15, 2024, WMT’s average trading volume was 19.45M shares.
WMT’s Market Performance
WMT’s stock has seen a 0.48% increase for the week, with a -1.86% drop in the past month and a 11.99% gain in the past quarter. The volatility ratio for the week is 1.43%, and the volatility levels for the past 30 days are at 1.17% for Walmart Inc. The simple moving average for the past 20 days is -0.36% for WMT’s stock, with a 10.13% simple moving average for the past 200 days.
Analysts’ Opinion of WMT
Many brokerage firms have already submitted their reports for WMT stocks, with Telsey Advisory Group repeating the rating for WMT by listing it as a “Outperform.” The predicted price for WMT in the upcoming period, according to Telsey Advisory Group is $205 based on the research report published on February 21, 2024 of the current year 2024.
HSBC Securities, on the other hand, stated in their research note that they expect to see WMT reach a price target of $200. The rating they have provided for WMT stocks is “Buy” according to the report published on September 22nd, 2023.
RBC Capital Mkts gave a rating of “Outperform” to WMT, setting the target price at $168 in the report published on August 18th of the previous year.
WMT Trading at 1.83% from the 50-Day Moving Average
After a stumble in the market that brought WMT to its low price for the period of the last 52 weeks, the company was unable to rebound, for now settling with -2.46% of loss for the given period.
Volatility was left at 1.17%, however, over the last 30 days, the volatility rate increased by 1.43%, as shares sank -1.44% for the moving average over the last 20 days. Over the last 50 days, in opposition, the stock is trading +9.18% upper at present.
During the last 5 trading sessions, WMT rose by +0.48%, which changed the moving average for the period of 200-days by +16.78% in comparison to the 20-day moving average, which settled at $60.32. In addition, Walmart Inc saw 14.44% in overturn over a single year, with a tendency to cut further gains.
Insider Trading
Reports are indicating that there were more than several insider trading activities at WMT starting from Rainey John D, who sale 3,000 shares at the price of $60.26 back on Apr 01 ’24. After this action, Rainey John D now owns 524,613 shares of Walmart Inc, valued at $180,782 using the latest closing price.
McMillon C Douglas, the President and CEO of Walmart Inc, sale 29,124 shares at $60.45 during a trade that took place back on Mar 28 ’24, which means that McMillon C Douglas is holding 4,047,767 shares at $1,760,400 based on the most recent closing price.
Stock Fundamentals for WMT
Current profitability levels for the company are sitting at:
- 0.04 for the present operating margin
- 0.24 for the gross margin
The net margin for Walmart Inc stands at 0.02. The total capital return value is set at 0.17. Equity return is now at value 19.32, with 6.26 for asset returns.
Based on Walmart Inc (WMT), the company’s capital structure generated 0.34 points at debt to capital in total, while cash flow to debt ratio is standing at 0.84. The debt to equity ratio resting at 0.51. The interest coverage ratio of the stock is 10.07.
Currently, EBITDA for the company is 38.87 billion with net debt to EBITDA at 1.45. When we switch over and look at the enterprise to sales, we see a ratio of 0.83. The receivables turnover for the company is 73.68for trailing twelve months and the total asset turnover is 2.57. The liquidity ratio also appears to be rather interesting for investors as it stands at 0.83.
Conclusion
To wrap up, the performance of Walmart Inc (WMT) has been better in recent times. The stock has received a bullish of “buy” and “hold” ratings from analysts. It is worth mentioning that the stock is currently trading in close proximity to its 50-day moving average and its 52-week high.
