Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE:WMT) has been given a $115.00 target price by analysts at Goldman Sachs Group in a research report issued on Tuesday. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the retailer’s stock. Goldman Sachs Group’s price target points to a potential upside of 14.05% from the company’s current price.
Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their price target on Wal-Mart Stores from $108.00 to $96.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 17th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Wal-Mart Stores from $83.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 17th. Moffett Nathanson began coverage on Wal-Mart Stores in a research report on Monday, December 4th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Co set a $101.00 price target on Wal-Mart Stores and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Group boosted their price target on Wal-Mart Stores from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 11th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. The company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $99.01.
Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE:WMT) traded down $0.05 on Tuesday, reaching $100.83. The company had a trading volume of 2,560,000 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,350,000. Wal-Mart Stores has a fifty-two week low of $65.28 and a fifty-two week high of $102.35. The company has a market capitalization of $298,700.00, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.82, a PEG ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.
Wal-Mart Stores declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, October 10th that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the retailer to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.
In related news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 2,900,679 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.82, for a total transaction of $283,744,419.78. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,748,580 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $660,146,095.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Jacqueline P. Canney sold 2,065 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.99, for a total value of $200,284.35. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,060 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,848,629.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,419,588 shares of company stock worth $1,207,333,538 in the last three months. 51.39% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WMT. Hudock Capital Group LLC lifted its stake in Wal-Mart Stores by 0.4% during the second quarter. Hudock Capital Group LLC now owns 1,847 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $139,000 after purchasing an additional 7 shares during the last quarter. Gemmer Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Wal-Mart Stores by 0.3% during the second quarter. Gemmer Asset Management LLC now owns 2,965 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. LLBH Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Wal-Mart Stores by 0.3% during the second quarter. LLBH Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,843 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $594,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Wal-Mart Stores by 0.3% during the second quarter. Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 7,654 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $579,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Telemus Capital LLC lifted its stake in Wal-Mart Stores by 1.1% during the second quarter. Telemus Capital LLC now owns 3,633 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. 30.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
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Wal-Mart Stores Company Profile
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc is engaged in the operation of retail, wholesale and other units in various formats around the world. The Company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International and Sam’s Club. The Walmart U.S. segment includes its mass merchant concept in the United States operating under the Walmart or Wal-Mart brands, as well as digital retail.
