Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Acquires 230,314 Shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 426.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 284,365 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 230,314 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $15,088,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 418.5% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 46,140 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,446,000 after buying an additional 37,242 shares in the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank bought a new stake in Tractor Supply in the fourth quarter valued at $337,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its stake in Tractor Supply by 392.3% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 640 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank raised its stake in Tractor Supply by 427.1% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 115,825 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $6,146,000 after acquiring an additional 93,851 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Threadgill Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 416.8% during the fourth quarter. Threadgill Financial LLC now owns 15,250 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $809,000 after acquiring an additional 12,299 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.72% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Tractor Supply from $59.00 to $56.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Tractor Supply from $44.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Mizuho decreased their price target on Tractor Supply from $62.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Stephens began coverage on Tractor Supply in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.02.

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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 31,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,833,792.03. This represents a 10.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Colin Yankee sold 24,602 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.15, for a total value of $1,332,198.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 33,645 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,821,876.75. This trade represents a 42.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 40,598 shares of company stock valued at $2,234,481 in the last 90 days. 0.65% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Tractor Supply Stock Down 0.2%

NASDAQ:TSCO opened at $51.31 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $51.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.14. Tractor Supply has a 52-week low of $46.85 and a 52-week high of $61.53. 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 company has a market cap of $27.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.82.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.03). Tractor Supply had a return on equity of 49.01% and a net margin of 7.40%. The firm had revenue of $3.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.55 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.83 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 EPS for the current year.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a $0.92 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.17%. This is an increase from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio is 45.77%.

Tractor Supply declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often 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.