Decoding Walmart's Options Activity: What's the Big Picture?

Author: Benzinga Insights | July 12, 2024 10:33am

Financial giants have made a conspicuous bullish move on Walmart. Our analysis of options history for Walmart (NYSE:WMT) revealed 8 unusual trades.

Delving into the details, we found 50% of traders were bullish, while 12% showed bearish tendencies. Out of all the trades we spotted, 3 were puts, with a value of $145,956, and 5 were calls, valued at $718,645.

Expected Price Movements

Analyzing the Volume and Open Interest in these contracts, it seems that the big players have been eyeing a price window from $43.33 to $80.0 for Walmart during the past quarter.

Volume & Open Interest Trends

Examining the volume and open interest provides crucial insights into stock research. This information is key in gauging liquidity and interest levels for Walmart's options at certain strike prices. Below, we present a snapshot of the trends in volume and open interest for calls and puts across Walmart's significant trades, within a strike price range of $43.33 to $80.0, over the past month.

Walmart Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days

Noteworthy Options Activity:

Symbol	PUT/CALL	Trade Type	Sentiment	Exp. Date	Ask	Bid	Price	Strike Price	Total Trade Price	Open Interest	Volume
WMT	CALL	SWEEP	BULLISH	01/16/26	$25.0	$20.5	$23.28	$50.00	$464.6K	755	0
WMT	CALL	TRADE	BULLISH	01/16/26	$31.35	$28.0	$30.25	$43.33	$121.0K	1.0K	0
WMT	PUT	SWEEP	BULLISH	07/26/24	$0.57	$0.56	$0.56	$69.00	$82.4K	304	13
WMT	CALL	TRADE	NEUTRAL	12/20/24	$20.65	$20.55	$20.6	$50.00	$59.7K	910	0
WMT	CALL	TRADE	NEUTRAL	12/20/24	$20.6	$20.5	$20.55	$50.00	$43.1K	910	29

About Walmart

Walmart serves as the preeminent retailer in the United States, with its strategy predicated on superior operating efficiency and offering the lowest priced goods to consumers to drive robust store traffic and product turnover. Walmart augmented its low-price business strategy by offering a convenient one-stop shopping destination with the opening of its first supercenter in 1988.Today, Walmart operates over 4,600 stores in the United States (5,200 including Sam's Club) and over 10,000 stores globally. Walmart generated over $440 billion in domestic namesake sales in fiscal 2024, with Sam's Club contributing another $86 billion to the firm's top line. Internationally, Walmart generated $115 billion in sales. The retailer serves around 240 million customers globally each week.

Having examined the options trading patterns of Walmart, our attention now turns directly to the company. This shift allows us to delve into its present market position and performance

Present Market Standing of Walmart

• Currently trading with a volume of 1,243,357, the WMT's price is down by -0.12%, now at $69.72.
• RSI readings suggest the stock is currently may be approaching overbought.
• Anticipated earnings release is in 34 days.

Professional Analyst Ratings for Walmart

Over the past month, 4 industry analysts have shared their insights on this stock, proposing an average target price of $75.5.

• An analyst from Stifel has decided to maintain their Hold rating on Walmart, which currently sits at a price target of $71.
• An analyst from Deutsche Bank has decided to maintain their Buy rating on Walmart, which currently sits at a price target of $77.
• An analyst from Evercore ISI Group has decided to maintain their Outperform rating on Walmart, which currently sits at a price target of $73.
• In a cautious move, an analyst from Piper Sandler downgraded its rating to Overweight, setting a price target of $81.

Trading options involves greater risks but also offers the potential for higher profits. Savvy traders mitigate these risks through ongoing education, strategic trade adjustments, utilizing various indicators, and staying attuned to market dynamics. Keep up with the latest options trades for Walmart with Benzinga Pro for real-time alerts.

Posted In: WMT