Ascent Group LLC Boosts Stock Position in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Ascent Group LLC raised its position in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO - Free Report) by 267.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,706 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 5,610 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $409,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Tractor Supply by 392.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 64,033,972 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $3,397,643,000 after purchasing an additional 51,031,178 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Tractor Supply by 401.8% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 23,789,249 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,262,258,000 after purchasing an additional 19,048,385 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in Tractor Supply by 403.3% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 22,256,534 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,180,932,000 after purchasing an additional 17,834,643 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in Tractor Supply by 403.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 19,433,135 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,031,122,000 after purchasing an additional 15,575,311 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors boosted its stake in Tractor Supply by 334.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 15,429,288 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $818,421,000 after purchasing an additional 11,880,010 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.72% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 2,810 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.76, for a total value of $145,445.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 29,722 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,538,410.72. This represents a 8.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.65% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TSCO has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group set a $54.00 price objective on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Tractor Supply from $59.00 to $51.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Truist Financial reduced 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 note on Friday, January 31st. Telsey Advisory Group set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $56.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $58.02.

Tractor Supply Trading Down 1.1%

TSCO traded down $0.55 on Friday, hitting $48.42. 7,785,239 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,168,265. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 1.43. Tractor Supply has a 12 month low of $46.85 and a 12 month high of $61.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.67 billion, a PE ratio of 23.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.82.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $3.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.55 billion. Tractor Supply had a return on equity of 49.01% and a net margin of 7.40%. Tractor Supply's revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.83 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Tractor Supply announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the specialty retailer to repurchase up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Tractor Supply Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 28th will be issued a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 28th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.90%. Tractor Supply's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.77%.

Tractor Supply Company 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.