US Bancorp DE Raises Stake in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

US Bancorp DE lifted its position in shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 385.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 164,239 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 130,437 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $8,715,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of TSCO. Meridiem Investment Management Ltd. grew 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 purchasing an additional 4,092,808 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings 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 during the period. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt grew its holdings 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 during the period. Provident Trust Co. grew its holdings 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 during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 345.2% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,402,070 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $74,394,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087,112 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.72% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on TSCO. Loop Capital boosted their target price on Tractor Supply from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America upped their price target on Tractor Supply from $44.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI upgraded Tractor Supply from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Tractor Supply in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.22.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.69, for a total transaction of $222,106.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,833,792.03. The trade was a 10.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Harry A. Lawton III sold 88,095 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was 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 directly owns 488,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,686,430.68. The trade was a 15.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 137,993 shares of company stock valued at $7,538,068. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Tractor Supply Stock Performance

TSCO stock opened at $54.95 on Thursday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $29.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.94, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.84. Tractor Supply has a 1 year low of $48.30 and a 1 year high of $61.53. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $55.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.71.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last posted 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%. On average, research analysts predict that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 EPS for the current year.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

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

Tractor Supply declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 13th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty retailer to repurchase up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.