O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 459.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 72,537 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 59,579 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $3,849,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Tractor Supply by 7.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 163,454 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $47,554,000 after purchasing an additional 11,584 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 4,664 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,357,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Tractor Supply during the third quarter worth approximately $1,082,000. Finally, Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in Tractor Supply in the third quarter valued at approximately $485,000. 98.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Tractor Supply Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of TSCO stock opened at $55.62 on Thursday. Tractor Supply has a twelve month low of $48.30 and a twelve month high of $61.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The business’s 50 day moving average is $54.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.64. The company has a market capitalization of $29.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.85.

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

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a $0.92 dividend. This is a boost from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.62%. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.10%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

TSCO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Tractor Supply from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays decreased their price target on Tractor Supply from $262.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 30th. Mizuho increased their price objective on Tractor Supply from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital boosted their target price on Tractor Supply from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Two 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.22.

Insider Buying and Selling at Tractor Supply

In related news, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were 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 owns 31,787 shares in the company, valued at $1,833,792.03. This trade represents a 10.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Kurt D. Barton sold 12,146 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.00, for a total transaction of $680,176.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 47,715 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,672,040. This trade represents a 20.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 137,993 shares of company stock valued at $7,538,068. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.