WMT Pulls Back From Record Highs Despite Sales Surge

Walmart's sales surged 20% in March, according to a Wall Street Journal report

Retail giant Walmart Inc (NYSE:WMT) is pulling back this afternoon, after hitting a record high of $133.38 earlier today, on a Wall Street Journal report that the company's sales jumped nearly 20% in March. Walmart also announced it will require its 1.5 million U.S. employees to wear masks. At last check, WMT is down 0.1% at $131.90.

Options traders are also responding to the news, with 42,000 calls and 17,000 puts exchanging hands so far today -- 1.6 times the average intraday volume. The weekly 4/24 135-strike call is the most popular by far, with positions being opened here, suggesting these traders are eyeing even more upside for WMT this week.

While sentiment among the brokerage bunch is mostly positive, there are still some holdouts. Eighteen analysts covering WMT consider it a "buy" or better, while five call it a "hold" or worse. Plus, the consensus 12-month price target of $129.26 sits right below current levels.

A look at the charts shows that WMT staged a sharp bounce off its 320-day moving average back in March, with more recent support at the 10-day moving average guiding the equity towards a series of all-time highs. The stock is now up 27.8% year-over-year, and 10.9% year-to-date.