Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 28,651 Shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. $BBY

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group reduced its Best Buy stake by 17.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 28,651 shares and leaving it with 131,249 shares valued at about $8.8 million.
• Insider selling has also been notable, with CAO Mathew Watson and CFO Matthew M. Bilunas both selling shares on March 23; insiders have sold 77,247 shares over the past three months.
• Best Buy’s outlook is mixed: analysts see possible first-quarter support from in-line comparable sales and earnings growth, but concerns remain about product shortages, a CEO transition, and whether the company can beat expectations.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY - Free Report) by 17.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 131,249 shares of the technology retailer's stock after selling 28,651 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of Best Buy worth $8,784,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Huntington National Bank boosted its holdings in Best Buy by 12.0% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,298 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Best Buy by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,637 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $1,114,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Best Buy by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC now owns 4,270 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $286,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Best Buy by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,345 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $224,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J. Team Financial Inc. lifted its position in Best Buy by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. J. Team Financial Inc. now owns 4,251 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $285,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. 80.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Mathew Watson sold 3,298 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.02, for a total transaction of $211,137.96. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 23,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,484,751.84. This represents a 12.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Matthew M. Bilunas sold 11,356 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.02, for a total transaction of $727,011.12. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 76,884 shares in the company, valued at $4,922,113.68. The trade was a 12.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 77,247 shares of company stock valued at $4,945,353. Corporate insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.

Best Buy News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Best Buy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Best Buy is being viewed as likely to post solid first-quarter results, with analysts expecting in-line comparable sales and year-over-year earnings growth, which could help support the stock if the company meets those expectations. Best Buy Poised for In-Line First-Quarter Comparable Sales, Wedbush Says
• Positive Sentiment: Recent momentum has improved, with the stock outperforming over the past week even though it remains down year to date, suggesting investors may be positioning for the upcoming report. A Look At Best Buy Valuation As Earnings Expectations And Cautious Sentiment Shape The May 28 Report
• Neutral Sentiment: New back-to-school-style promotions in Canada, such as BMO’s student tech reward tied to Best Buy Canada, may help traffic, but the announcement appears more promotional than material for near-term earnings. Is Best Buy’s Student Tech Perks Masking Deeper Supply Chain And Leadership Questions?
• Negative Sentiment: Investor caution is rising because Best Buy is dealing with product shortages and an upcoming CEO transition, both of which could cloud the earnings outlook and pressure sentiment if management gives a conservative forecast. Is Best Buy’s Student Tech Perks Masking Deeper Supply Chain And Leadership Questions?
• Negative Sentiment: Several previews note that Best Buy may not have the best setup for an earnings beat, which could limit upside if results only match expectations rather than exceed them. Best Buy (BBY) Q1 Earnings Preview: What You Should Know Beyond the Headline Estimates

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BBY shares. HSBC cut their target price on shares of Best Buy from $96.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. KeyCorp restated a "sector weight" rating on shares of Best Buy in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Best Buy from a "buy" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $59.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, April 13th. DA Davidson set a $78.00 price objective on shares of Best Buy in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Wedbush boosted their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Best Buy has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $70.80.

Best Buy Stock Performance

NYSE BBY opened at $61.53 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $12.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.21, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.22. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $61.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.18. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $55.10 and a twelve month high of $84.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The technology retailer reported $2.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $13.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.96 billion. Best Buy had a net margin of 2.56% and a return on equity of 49.17%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.58 earnings per share. Best Buy has set its FY 2027 guidance at 6.300-6.600 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 24th were paid a dividend of $0.96 per share. This is a positive change from Best Buy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 24th. Best Buy's payout ratio is currently 76.19%.

About Best Buy

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BBY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.