Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich Acquires 252,016 Shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 464.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 306,330 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 252,016 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $16,265,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in TSCO. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Tractor Supply during the 4th quarter worth about $329,458,000. Meridiem Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 398.9% during the 4th quarter. Meridiem Investment Management Ltd. now owns 5,118,785 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $271,674,000 after acquiring an additional 4,092,808 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 403.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,912,752 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $207,611,000 after purchasing an additional 3,135,384 shares in the last quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt increased its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 400.0% during the 4th quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 3,750,000 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $199,012,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Provident Trust Co. increased its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 397.4% during the 4th quarter. Provident Trust Co. now owns 3,380,905 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $179,391,000 after purchasing an additional 2,701,204 shares in the last quarter. 98.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TSCO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Tractor Supply from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Tractor Supply from $65.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Tractor Supply from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Tractor Supply from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Loop Capital increased their target price on shares of Tractor Supply from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.22.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Tractor Supply news, CEO Harry A. Lawton III sold 88,095 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.59, for a total value of $4,809,106.05. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 488,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,686,430.68. The trade was a 15.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.69, for a total transaction of $222,106.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,833,792.03. The trade was a 10.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 137,993 shares of company stock valued at $7,538,068 in the last 90 days. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Tractor Supply Stock Up 4.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:TSCO opened at $56.89 on Friday. Tractor Supply has a one year low of $48.30 and a one year high of $61.53. The company has a 50 day moving average of $55.11 and a 200-day moving average of $55.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 0.20. The stock has a market cap of $30.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.85.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.44 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.92 per share. This is a positive change from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.47%. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.10%.

Tractor Supply declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock 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 purchase up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors 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.