Candriam S.C.A. Has $1.92 Million Holdings in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Candriam S.C.A. cut its stake in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) by 93.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,340 shares of the technology retailer’s stock after selling 324,535 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Best Buy were worth $1,917,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BBY. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Best Buy by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 247,510 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $25,568,000 after buying an additional 4,958 shares in the last quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Best Buy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $5,134,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its position in Best Buy by 202.0% during the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 33,647 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $3,476,000 after acquiring an additional 22,507 shares during the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its position in Best Buy by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 74,142 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $7,659,000 after acquiring an additional 5,050 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in Best Buy by 496.2% during the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 47,229 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $4,879,000 after acquiring an additional 39,307 shares during the last quarter. 80.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on BBY shares. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Best Buy in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group decreased their price target on Best Buy from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Best Buy from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Guggenheim decreased their price target on Best Buy from $105.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Best Buy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $93.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Matthew M. Bilunas sold 69,166 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.46, for a total transaction of $6,049,258.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 92,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,052,442.20. This trade represents a 42.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.59% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Best Buy Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE:BBY opened at $79.66 on Monday. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $69.29 and a 12-month high of $103.71. 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 market capitalization of $17.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.43. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $85.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $90.46.

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

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. This is an increase from Best Buy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.