Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) Reaches New 12-Month Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Best Buy shares hit a new 52-week low after Citigroup cut its price target from $69 to $60 while maintaining a neutral rating. The stock briefly fell to $55.61, below its prior close of $57.20.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with multiple firms recently trimming targets even as others stayed constructive. Overall, Best Buy has a Hold consensus rating and an average price target of $71.30.
• Insiders have been selling shares, including CEO Corie S. Barry and CAO Mathew Watson, totaling 77,247 shares over the past three months. Best Buy also recently reported quarterly EPS above estimates and boosted its dividend to $0.96 per share.

Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Citigroup lowered their price target on the stock from $69.00 to $60.00. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Best Buy traded as low as $55.61 and last traded at $55.9880, with a volume of 251354 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $57.20.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. BNP Paribas Exane increased their price objective on Best Buy from $68.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Best Buy from $73.00 to $66.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. DA Davidson set a $78.00 price target on shares of Best Buy in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Best Buy from $94.00 to $89.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $71.30.

Insider Activity at Best Buy

In other news, CAO Mathew Watson sold 3,298 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.02, for a total transaction of $211,137.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 23,192 shares in the company, valued at $1,484,751.84. This represents a 12.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Corie S. Barry sold 42,869 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.02, for a total value of $2,744,473.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 523,138 shares in the company, valued at $33,491,294.76. This trade represents a 7.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 77,247 shares of company stock worth $4,945,353. 0.59% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Best Buy

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Best Buy in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Best Buy in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Best Buy in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Best Buy in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Best Buy during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.96% of the company's stock.

Best Buy Trading Down 2.5%

The stock has a market capitalization of $11.75 billion, a PE ratio of 11.10, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The business's 50-day moving average is $62.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.54.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 3rd. The technology retailer reported $2.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.13. Best Buy had a return on equity of 49.17% and a net margin of 2.56%.The company had revenue of $13.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.96 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.58 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Best Buy has set its FY 2027 guidance at 6.300-6.600 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 24th were issued a $0.96 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 24th. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.9%. This is a boost from Best Buy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Best Buy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.19%.

Best Buy Company Profile

Best Buy Co, Inc is a leading North American consumer electronics retailer that sells a broad range of products including computers, mobile phones, televisions and home theater systems, major appliances, smart-home devices, gaming hardware and software, wearables and related accessories. The company operates through a mix of large-format stores, smaller specialty locations and an e-commerce platform, offering national and private-brand merchandise from major consumer-technology manufacturers as well as third-party sellers.

Beyond product retailing, Best Buy provides a suite of services aimed at installation, repair and ongoing technical support.

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