Schroder Investment Management Group Raises Holdings in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Schroder Investment Management Group grew its position in shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 6,316.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 878,613 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 864,920 shares during the quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $46,206,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co grew its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 978 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $285,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Synergy Financial Group LTD grew its position in Tractor Supply by 12.4% in the third quarter. Synergy Financial Group LTD now owns 1,090 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $317,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in Tractor Supply by 0.5% during the third quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 27,710 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $8,058,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC raised its position in Tractor Supply by 75.8% during the third quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 464 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $135,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Motley Fool Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 15,855 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,679,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. 98.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Tractor Supply Price Performance

TSCO opened at $55.10 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.42 billion, a PE ratio of 27.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 0.20. The business’s 50-day moving average is $55.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.65. Tractor Supply has a 1 year low of $48.30 and a 1 year high of $61.53.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.44 earnings per share (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%. Research analysts anticipate that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Tractor Supply announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty retailer to purchase up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. This is an increase from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.68%. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.10%.

Insider Activity

In other Tractor Supply news, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.69, for a total value of $222,106.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,833,792.03. This trade represents a 10.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Harry A. Lawton III sold 88,095 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.59, for a total value of $4,809,106.05. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 488,852 shares in the company, valued at $26,686,430.68. The trade was a 15.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 137,993 shares of company stock worth $7,538,068. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on TSCO shares. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Tractor Supply in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America upped their price objective on Tractor Supply from $44.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays reduced their target price on 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. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Tractor Supply from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.22.

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.