Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) Shares Gap Up - Here's Why

Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $60.43, but opened at $64.53. Best Buy shares last traded at $62.75, with a volume of 1,597,726 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on BBY shares. Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $90.00 target price on shares of Best Buy in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Best Buy from $81.00 to $64.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. UBS Group set a $105.00 price target on Best Buy in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Best Buy from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, DA Davidson restated a "buy" rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Best Buy in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Best Buy currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $91.28.

Best Buy Stock Performance

The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $74.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $84.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The company has a market capitalization of $13.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.42.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The technology retailer reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $13.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 in the previous year, the firm earned $2.72 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th were issued a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 25th. This is a positive change from Best Buy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.13%. Best Buy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 88.99%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Kathleen Scarlett sold 6,847 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.65, for a total value of $497,434.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 87,389 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,348,810.85. The trade was a 7.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Corie S. Barry bought 13,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $72.92 per share, with a total value of $984,420.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 378,780 shares in the company, valued at $27,620,637.60. This represents a 3.70 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold 78,355 shares of company stock valued at $5,767,213 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.59% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Best Buy

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in BBY. IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in Best Buy by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,538 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $218,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC raised its position in Best Buy by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 43,215 shares of the technology retailer's stock valued at $3,708,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC boosted its position in Best Buy by 36.3% during the 4th quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 529 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its position in Best Buy by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 861 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance grew its stake in shares of Best Buy by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 3,002 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $258,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.96% of the company's stock.

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.