According to reports, the retailer will roll out its Walmart+ service this month
A report from Vox's Recode said yesterday that mega-retailer Walmart Inc (NYSE:WMT) will launch a new membership program this month, in direct competition with Amazon's (AMZN) Prime service. The program will be called Walmart+ and cost $98 annually, according to reports. Perks will include fuel discounts, same-day delivery, and early access to product deals. Walmart has not issued any statements in response the report so far, and shares are down 0.9% at $125.89 at last check.
While WMT has been on a downtrend since late-May, pressured lower by its 30-day moving average, yesterday's news caused the equity to spike toward a nearly two-month high, toppling its aforementioned line of resistance. The security also managed to launch itself off its year-to-date breakeven near the $118 mark, putting it at roughly 7% lead for 2020.
The majority of analysts are quite bullish on WMT, despite its recent pullback. Nineteen of the 24 in coverage consider it a "buy" or better. Plus, the 12-month consensus price target of $135.39 is a 5.4% premium to its current level.
Even more optimistic are the options pits. This is per WMT's 10-day call/put volume ratio of 5.86 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), which sits higher than all but 1% of readings from the past year. This implies options traders have rarely been more call-biased in the last 12 months.