Man Group plc Purchases 152,251 Shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Man Group plc boosted its stake in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO - Free Report) by 989.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 167,643 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 152,251 shares during the quarter. Man Group plc's holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $8,895,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Tractor Supply news, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 2,810 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.76, for a total transaction of $145,445.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 29,722 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,538,410.72. This represents a 8.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.65% of the company's stock.

Tractor Supply Trading Down 3.0%

Shares of Tractor Supply stock traded down $1.56 on Wednesday, reaching $50.04. 5,460,259 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,140,518. The company has a market capitalization of $26.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.82. Tractor Supply has a 52 week low of $46.85 and a 52 week high of $61.53. The firm's 50-day moving average is $51.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.04. 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 (NASDAQ:TSCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $3.47 billion for 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 quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.83 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Tractor Supply declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the specialty retailer to purchase up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Tractor Supply Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 28th. Tractor Supply's payout ratio is 45.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on TSCO. Telsey Advisory Group set a $60.00 target price on Tractor Supply in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $56.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Tractor Supply from $59.00 to $51.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Guggenheim lowered their price objective on Tractor Supply from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on Tractor Supply from $62.00 to $58.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $58.02.

Tractor Supply 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.