Meridian Wealth Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Meridian Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 338.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,410 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 6,492 shares during the quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $446,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Meridiem Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Tractor Supply by 398.9% in the fourth quarter. Meridiem Investment Management Ltd. now owns 5,118,785 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $271,674,000 after buying an additional 4,092,808 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Tractor Supply by 3.5% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,740,864 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,379,260,000 after buying an additional 161,503 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Tractor Supply by 1.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,518,341 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,314,521,000 after buying an additional 47,951 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Tractor Supply by 403.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,912,752 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $207,611,000 after buying an additional 3,135,384 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt increased its holdings in Tractor Supply by 400.0% in the fourth quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 3,750,000 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $199,012,000 after buying an additional 3,000,000 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.72% of the company’s stock.

Tractor Supply Trading Down 0.3 %

NASDAQ TSCO opened at $54.95 on Thursday. Tractor Supply has a 52-week low of $48.30 and a 52-week high of $61.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.85. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $55.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $55.71.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.44 earnings per share (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%. Equities research analysts expect that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 EPS for the current year.

Tractor Supply declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, February 13th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty retailer to purchase up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be issued a $0.92 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. This is a boost from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.70%. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Tractor Supply

In other Tractor Supply news, EVP Melissa Kersey sold 9,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 34,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,858,876.37. This trade represents a 21.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,833,792.03. This trade represents a 10.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 137,993 shares of company stock valued at $7,538,068. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on TSCO shares. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Tractor Supply from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Tractor Supply from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Tractor Supply from $65.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Tractor Supply from $262.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Tractor Supply presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.22.

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.