Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Boosts Stock Holdings in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. increased its stake in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 408.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,060 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,708 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $905,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 29.4% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 286 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $83,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in Tractor Supply by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 17,726 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $5,157,000 after acquiring an additional 1,316 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 46,930 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $13,653,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 17.3% in the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 9,685 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,818,000 after purchasing an additional 1,430 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 163,454 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $47,554,000 after purchasing an additional 11,584 shares during the last quarter. 98.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Tractor Supply

In other 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 transaction of $4,809,106.05. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 488,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,686,430.68. This trade represents a 15.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Melissa Kersey sold 9,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.17, for a total value of $494,481.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 34,961 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,876.37. This trade represents a 21.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 137,993 shares of company stock worth $7,538,068 over the last three months. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on TSCO. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Loop Capital raised their target price on Tractor Supply from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Mizuho upped their price target on Tractor Supply from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Tractor Supply from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $67.00 price objective on shares of Tractor Supply in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.22.

Tractor Supply Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ TSCO opened at $53.87 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $55.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $55.66. Tractor Supply has a 1-year low of $48.30 and a 1-year high of $61.53. 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 company has a market cap of $28.77 billion, a PE ratio of 26.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.85.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.28 by ($1.84). Tractor Supply had a net margin of 7.40% and a return on equity of 49.01%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 EPS for the current year.

Tractor Supply announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a $0.92 dividend. This is a boost from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.10%.

Tractor Supply 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.