Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) Shares Purchased by Welch & Forbes LLC

Welch & Forbes LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 391.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 484,922 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 386,233 shares during the quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $25,730,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Baldwin Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 0.3% in the third quarter. Baldwin Investment Management LLC now owns 11,402 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,317,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 0.7% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 5,538 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,611,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 13.2% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 351 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $102,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 4.6% in the third quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 958 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cynosure Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 2.8% in the third quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 1,529 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $445,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.72% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TSCO has been the topic of several research reports. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $67.00 price objective on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Evercore ISI upgraded Tractor Supply from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective 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 cut their price objective 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. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Tractor Supply from $44.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. 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.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.22.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 owns 31,787 shares in the company, valued at $1,833,792.03. This represents a 10.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Melissa Kersey sold 9,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.17, for a total value of $494,481.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 34,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,858,876.37. The trade was a 21.01 % 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 quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Tractor Supply Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ TSCO opened at $54.59 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $55.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 1.43. The firm has a market cap of $29.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.76, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.85. Tractor Supply has a 1 year low of $48.30 and a 1 year high of $61.53.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.44 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%. Research analysts forecast 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 will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.74%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. This is an increase from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio is 45.10%.

Tractor Supply announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 13th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty retailer to buy up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.