Clearbridge Investments LLC Has $175.12 Million Position in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 410.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,300,360 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 2,653,364 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $175,117,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Tractor Supply by 392.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 64,033,972 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,397,643,000 after acquiring an additional 51,031,178 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 391.0% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,821,654 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $574,197,000 after purchasing an additional 8,617,869 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Tractor Supply in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $329,458,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Tractor Supply in the fourth quarter valued at $289,491,000. Finally, Meridiem Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Tractor Supply by 398.9% during the fourth quarter. Meridiem Investment Management Ltd. now owns 5,118,785 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $271,674,000 after buying an additional 4,092,808 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.72% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TSCO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Tractor Supply from $44.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $67.00 price target on shares of Tractor Supply in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Tractor Supply from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Tractor Supply from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Tractor Supply from $262.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.22.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Harry A. Lawton III sold 88,095 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.59, for a total transaction of $4,809,106.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 488,852 shares in the company, valued at $26,686,430.68. This represents a 15.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 31,787 shares in the company, valued at $1,833,792.03. This represents a 10.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 137,993 shares of company stock worth $7,538,068 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Tractor Supply Stock Down 1.3 %

TSCO stock opened at $53.47 on Monday. Tractor Supply has a 52 week low of $48.30 and a 52 week high of $61.53. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $55.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $55.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $28.55 billion, a PE ratio of 26.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.85.

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

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This is an increase from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.88%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. Tractor Supply’s payout ratio is currently 45.10%.

Tractor Supply announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 13th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Tractor Supply Company Profile

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.