Raymond James & Associates Buys 121,218 Shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 20.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 700,046 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 121,218 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates owned approximately 0.65% of Tractor Supply worth $183,216,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in TSCO. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in Tractor Supply during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its position in Tractor Supply by 157.1% during the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 108 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Tractor Supply during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Tractor Supply in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Tractor Supply during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.72% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Tractor Supply

In other Tractor Supply news, EVP Robert D. Mills sold 48,334 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.23, for a total transaction of $11,224,604.82. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,167 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,147,842.41. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, EVP Robert D. Mills sold 48,334 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.23, for a total value of $11,224,604.82. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,167 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,147,842.41. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Kurt D. Barton sold 401 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.06, for a total transaction of $93,056.06. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 25,013 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,804,516.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 90,090 shares of company stock worth $21,201,877. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on TSCO shares. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $256.00 target price on shares of Tractor Supply in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Guggenheim increased their target price on Tractor Supply from $210.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Tractor Supply from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 25th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Tractor Supply from $234.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Tractor Supply from $230.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Tractor Supply has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $248.17.

Tractor Supply Stock Up 3.3 %

NASDAQ:TSCO traded up $8.64 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $273.90. 1,599,528 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,032,605. The business has a 50-day moving average of $252.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $226.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 1.40. Tractor Supply has a 12-month low of $185.00 and a 12-month high of $274.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.56 billion, a PE ratio of 26.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.84.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The specialty retailer reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.40 billion. Tractor Supply had a net margin of 7.66% and a return on equity of 52.99%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.65 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Tractor Supply will post 10.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were given a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. This is a positive change from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.84%.

About Tractor Supply

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.