California Public Employees Retirement System Increases Stake in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its stake in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 394.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,273,508 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,016,031 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $67,572,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 163,454 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $47,554,000 after buying an additional 11,584 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 4,664 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,357,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 27,710 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $8,058,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Tractor Supply during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,082,000. Finally, Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in Tractor Supply during the third quarter worth approximately $485,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.72% of the company’s stock.

Tractor Supply Trading Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ:TSCO opened at $55.13 on Wednesday. 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 company has a market cap of $29.44 billion, a PE ratio of 27.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.85. The business’s 50 day moving average is $55.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.64.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts predict that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 EPS for the current year.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were 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 was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.68%. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio is 45.10%.

Tractor Supply announced that its Board of Directors 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 purchase up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Mizuho raised their target price 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. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on Tractor Supply from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Tractor Supply from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America raised their target price on Tractor Supply from $44.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered 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 report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Tractor Supply has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.22.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Tractor Supply news, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.69, for a total value of $222,106.50. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,833,792.03. This trade represents a 10.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Melissa Kersey sold 9,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 34,961 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,876.37. The trade was a 21.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 137,993 shares of company stock valued at $7,538,068 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.