Vanguard Group Inc. Buys 51,031,178 Shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 392.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 64,033,972 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 51,031,178 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 11.99% of Tractor Supply worth $3,397,643,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of TSCO. Stevens Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Tractor Supply during the fourth quarter valued at about $281,000. LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Tractor Supply by 482.9% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 973,523 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $51,655,000 after buying an additional 806,504 shares during the last quarter. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 439.7% in the 4th quarter. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC now owns 28,735 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,525,000 after buying an additional 23,411 shares during the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 400.0% in the fourth quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 8,650 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $459,000 after acquiring an additional 6,920 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of Tractor Supply during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,570,000. 98.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on TSCO shares. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Tractor Supply in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Tractor Supply from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Tractor Supply from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $67.00 price objective on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.22.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Harry A. Lawton III sold 88,095 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Melissa Kersey sold 9,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.17, for a total transaction of $494,481.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 34,961 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,876.37. The trade was a 21.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 137,993 shares of company stock worth $7,538,068. Corporate insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Tractor Supply Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of TSCO stock opened at $52.83 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $28.21 billion, a PE ratio of 25.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.85. Tractor Supply has a 52-week low of $48.30 and a 52-week high of $61.53. The business’s fifty day moving average is $55.00 and its 200 day moving average is $55.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 1.43.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 7.40% and a return on equity of 49.01%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. Tractor Supply’s payout ratio is currently 45.10%.

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