Russell Investments Group Ltd. Acquires 283,025 Shares of Tractor Supply Company (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Tractor Supply Company by 74.5%, acquiring an additional 283,025 shares, bringing its total holdings to 662,810 shares valued at approximately $36.47 million.
• Recent analyst reports show that Tractor Supply has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy", with an average price target of $61.80 and several firms adjusting their price targets upward.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.23 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 1.5%, set to be paid on September 9.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Tractor Supply Company (NASDAQ:TSCO - Free Report) by 74.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 662,810 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 283,025 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.12% of Tractor Supply worth $36,472,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Tractor Supply by 3.3% during the first quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 181,549 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $9,960,000 after buying an additional 5,754 shares during the period. Arrowpoint Investment Partners Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in Tractor Supply during the first quarter valued at $788,000. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its position in Tractor Supply by 2.1% during the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 235,879 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $12,997,000 after buying an additional 4,739 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in Tractor Supply by 9.9% during the first quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 72,579 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $3,999,000 after buying an additional 6,554 shares during the period. Finally, Meridian Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Tractor Supply by 34.1% during the first quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,282 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $622,000 after buying an additional 2,872 shares during the period. 98.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Denise L. Jackson sold 1,165 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.50, for a total value of $68,152.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 31,123 shares in the company, valued at $1,820,695.50. This represents a 3.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Colin Yankee sold 6,680 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.40, for a total value of $390,112.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 40,142 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,344,292.80. The trade was a 14.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 204,680 shares of company stock valued at $12,071,552 over the last ninety days. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Tractor Supply Price Performance

Shares of TSCO traded up $0.80 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $60.49. The stock had a trading volume of 3,901,483 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,670,729. Tractor Supply Company has a 12 month low of $46.85 and a 12 month high of $63.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.06 billion, a PE ratio of 29.68, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 1.28. The company's 50-day moving average is $56.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.76.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.40 billion. Tractor Supply had a return on equity of 46.83% and a net margin of 7.18%. Tractor Supply's revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.93 EPS. Research analysts expect that Tractor Supply Company will post 2.17 EPS for the current year.

Tractor Supply Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Investors of record on Monday, August 25th will be issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 25th. Tractor Supply's dividend payout ratio is presently 45.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on TSCO shares. UBS Group upped their price target on Tractor Supply from $54.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Mizuho dropped their target price on Tractor Supply from $62.00 to $58.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Loop Capital upped their target price on Tractor Supply from $48.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Citigroup dropped their target price on Tractor Supply from $59.00 to $51.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their target price on Tractor Supply from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Tractor Supply has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $61.80.

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.