Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Sells 2,802 Shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. trimmed its holdings in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) by 9.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,458 shares of the technology retailer’s stock after selling 2,802 shares during the period. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.’s holdings in Best Buy were worth $2,270,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BBY. Pathstone Holdings LLC lifted its stake in shares of Best Buy by 2.7% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 33,975 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $3,511,000 after buying an additional 899 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Best Buy by 7.6% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 36,195 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $3,739,000 after buying an additional 2,548 shares in the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board bought a new position in shares of Best Buy in the third quarter valued at $358,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI bought a new position in shares of Best Buy in the third quarter valued at $223,000. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Best Buy by 330.3% in the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 170,155 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $17,577,000 after buying an additional 130,608 shares in the last quarter. 80.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Mathew Watson sold 3,182 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.29, for a total value of $226,844.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 19,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,370,051.22. This trade represents a 14.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Corie S. Barry acquired 13,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $72.92 per share, with a total value of $984,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 378,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,620,637.60. This trade represents a 3.70 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.59% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim dropped their price target on shares of Best Buy from $105.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Best Buy from $105.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Best Buy from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group dropped their price target on shares of Best Buy from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Best Buy from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $93.50.

Best Buy Price Performance

BBY opened at $73.63 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.59, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $83.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $89.17. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $69.29 and a twelve month high of $103.71.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The technology retailer reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $13.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.69 billion. Best Buy had a net margin of 3.01% and a return on equity of 45.93%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.72 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be given a $0.95 dividend. This is a positive change from Best Buy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 88.99%.

About Best Buy

Best Buy Co, Inc engages in the retail of technology products in the United States, Canada, and international. Its stores provide computing and mobile phone products, such as desktops, notebooks, and peripherals; mobile phones comprising related mobile network carrier commissions; networking products; tablets covering e-readers; smartwatches; and consumer electronics consisting of digital imaging, health and fitness products, portable audio comprising headphones and portable speakers, and smart home products, as well as home theaters, which includes home theater accessories, soundbars, and televisions.