Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.02 EPS

Key Points

• Tractor Supply beat quarterly expectations: EPS was $0.43 versus the $0.41 consensus, while revenue reached $3.91 billion, above estimates of $3.82 billion and up 5.1% year over year. However, EPS declined from $0.49 in the prior-year quarter.
• The company maintained shareholder returns with a quarterly dividend of $0.24, equivalent to $0.96 annually and a 2.9% yield.
• Analysts hold a generally neutral view, with the stock carrying a consensus “Hold” rating and a $39 average price target; insiders purchased more than $652,000 of shares over the past 90 days.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO - Get Free Report) announced its earnings results on Thursday. The specialty retailer reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.02, Zacks reports. Tractor Supply had a net margin of 6.42% and a return on equity of 41.74%. The firm had revenue of $3.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. The business's revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

Tractor Supply Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ TSCO opened at $32.69 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The company has a market cap of $17.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.03, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.52. Tractor Supply has a 1 year low of $28.36 and a 1 year high of $58.21. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $33.47.

Tractor Supply Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 24th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 24th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Tractor Supply's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on TSCO. Argus set a $41.00 price objective on Tractor Supply in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Zacks Research upgraded Tractor Supply from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their price objective on Tractor Supply from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Tractor Supply from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Raymond James Financial dropped their target price on Tractor Supply from $48.00 to $40.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 17th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $39.00.

Insider Activity

In other Tractor Supply news, Director Edna Morris bought 1,560 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $32.44 per share, with a total value of $50,606.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 279,720 shares in the company, valued at $9,074,116.80. This represents a 0.56% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Harry Lawton, III purchased 15,600 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $32.15 per share, for a total transaction of $501,540.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 15,600 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $501,540. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 20,310 shares of company stock valued at $652,411. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Tractor Supply Company Profile

Tractor Supply Company NASDAQ: TSCO is a specialty retailer serving the needs of farmers, ranchers, hobby farmers, pet owners, gardeners and other rural lifestyle customers. The company operates under the Tractor Supply banner and focuses on products that support everyday rural living, land maintenance and animal care.

Its merchandise includes livestock and pet feed, animal health and care products, fencing, hardware, tools, power equipment, lawn and garden supplies, work clothing, footwear, automotive products and seasonal goods.

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