Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) Upgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Wednesday morning.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on BBY. Telsey Advisory Group increased their target price on shares of Best Buy from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Piper Sandler reissued an overweight rating and issued a $114.00 target price (up previously from $100.00) on shares of Best Buy in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Melius Research began coverage on Best Buy in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a hold rating and a $100.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an in-line rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Loop Capital raised their target price on Best Buy from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday, August 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Best Buy presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $102.41.

Best Buy Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:BBY opened at $99.71 on Wednesday. Best Buy has a 12-month low of $62.30 and a 12-month high of $103.71. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $92.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $84.75. The firm has a market cap of $21.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.46, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 29th. The technology retailer reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.18. Best Buy had a return on equity of 47.19% and a net margin of 2.96%. The firm had revenue of $9.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.22 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Best Buy will post 6.28 EPS for the current year.

Best Buy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 19th. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Jason J. Bonfig sold 3,500 shares of Best Buy stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.02, for a total value of $290,570.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 50,714 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,210,276.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Best Buy news, Chairman Richard M. Schulze sold 600,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.29, for a total transaction of $52,974,000.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 14,002,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,236,311,891.37. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Jason J. Bonfig sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.02, for a total transaction of $290,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 50,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,210,276.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,383,370 shares of company stock valued at $122,233,276 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.59% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Best Buy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IMPACTfolio LLC bought a new stake in shares of Best Buy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $228,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in shares of Best Buy during the 2nd quarter worth $25,287,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Best Buy in the 2nd quarter worth $902,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in shares of Best Buy during the second quarter worth $60,000. Finally, SPC Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Best Buy by 12.3% during the second quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 4,442 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $374,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.96% of the company’s stock.

About Best Buy

Best Buy Co, Inc engages in the retail of technology products in the United States, Canada, and international. Its stores provide computing and mobile phone products, such as desktops, notebooks, and peripherals; mobile phones comprising related mobile network carrier commissions; networking products; tablets covering e-readers; smartwatches; and consumer electronics consisting of digital imaging, health and fitness products, portable audio comprising headphones and portable speakers, and smart home products, as well as home theaters, which includes home theater accessories, soundbars, and televisions.