Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) Stock Position Boosted by Aviva PLC

Aviva PLC grew its stake in shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 390.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 802,685 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 639,173 shares during the period. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $42,590,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in TSCO. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Tractor Supply in the fourth quarter worth approximately $9,363,000. Islay Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 407.2% in the fourth quarter. Islay Capital Management LLC now owns 19,100 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,013,000 after buying an additional 15,334 shares during the period. Somerville Kurt F grew its holdings in Tractor Supply by 400.0% during the fourth quarter. Somerville Kurt F now owns 7,500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $398,000 after acquiring an additional 6,000 shares during the period. Smith Moore & CO. raised its position in Tractor Supply by 381.8% in the fourth quarter. Smith Moore & CO. now owns 24,901 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,321,000 after acquiring an additional 19,733 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prudential PLC boosted its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 360.9% during the 4th quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 243,151 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $12,902,000 after purchasing an additional 190,396 shares in the last quarter. 98.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on TSCO shares. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Tractor Supply from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays cut their price objective on Tractor Supply from $262.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 30th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Tractor Supply from $44.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Tractor Supply in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Tractor Supply has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.22.

Tractor Supply Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ TSCO opened at $52.40 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 0.20. Tractor Supply has a one year low of $48.30 and a one year high of $61.53. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $54.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $55.61. The company has a market capitalization of $27.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.88.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by ($1.84). Tractor Supply had a return on equity of 49.01% and a net margin of 7.40%. Analysts anticipate that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.02%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This is a positive change from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Tractor Supply’s payout ratio is presently 45.10%.

Tractor Supply declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the specialty retailer to buy up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Tractor Supply news, CFO Kurt D. Barton sold 12,146 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.00, for a total transaction of $680,176.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 47,715 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,672,040. This represents a 20.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.69, for a total transaction of $222,106.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,833,792.03. This represents a 10.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 137,993 shares of company stock worth $7,538,068. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

About Tractor Supply

Tractor Supply Company operates as a rural lifestyle retailer in the United States. The company offers various merchandise, including livestock and equine feed and equipment, poultry, fencing, and sprayers and chemicals; food, treats, and equipment for dogs, cats, and other small animals, as well as dog wellness products; seasonal and recreation products comprising tractors and riders, lawn and garden, bird feeding, power equipment, and other recreational products; truck, tool, and hardware products, such as truck accessories, trailers, generators, lubricants, batteries, and hardware and tools; and clothing, gift, and décor products consist of clothing, footwear, toys, snacks, and decorative merchandise.