Tractor Supply Company $TSCO Shares Sold by Capital Group Private Client Services Inc.

Key Points

• Capital Group Private Client Services cut its stake in Tractor Supply by 77.2% in Q3, selling 776,058 shares and leaving 229,572 shares valued at about $13.06 million.
• Analyst consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with a consensus target of $59.78 (15 Buys, 9 Holds, 1 Sell) and individual price targets roughly ranging from $50 to $65.
• Tractor Supply missed Q4 estimates (EPS $0.43 vs. $0.46 consensus; revenue $3.90B vs. $4.03B) despite 3.3% YoY revenue growth, announced a higher quarterly dividend of $0.24 (annualized $0.96, ~1.9% yield), and insiders — including the CEO — have sold notable shares (CEO sold 84,670 shares recently).

Capital Group Private Client Services Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Tractor Supply Company (NASDAQ:TSCO - Free Report) by 77.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 229,572 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 776,058 shares during the quarter. Capital Group Private Client Services Inc.'s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $13,056,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Buckhead Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 310.3% during the third quarter. Buckhead Capital Management LLC now owns 36,863 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,096,000 after purchasing an additional 27,878 shares during the period. First National Bank of Omaha purchased a new position in shares of Tractor Supply in the third quarter valued at $5,069,000. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its holdings in Tractor Supply by 6.4% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 130,035 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $6,862,000 after purchasing an additional 7,871 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in Tractor Supply by 45.2% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 149,323 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $7,880,000 after buying an additional 46,471 shares during the period. Finally, Bison Wealth LLC increased its stake in Tractor Supply by 356.1% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 6,426 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $341,000 after buying an additional 5,017 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.72% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TSCO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Tractor Supply in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Gordon Haskett downgraded Tractor Supply from an "accumulate" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $57.00 to $50.00 in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and set a $61.00 price objective (down from $66.00) on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Tractor Supply presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $59.78.

Tractor Supply Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:TSCO opened at $50.67 on Tuesday. The company's fifty day moving average is $52.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 1.34. Tractor Supply Company has a 1-year low of $46.85 and a 1-year high of $63.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.72.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The specialty retailer reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $3.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. Tractor Supply had a net margin of 7.06% and a return on equity of 44.36%. Tractor Supply's quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.44 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Tractor Supply Company will post 2.17 EPS for the current year.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 24th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 24th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. This is an increase from Tractor Supply's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Tractor Supply's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Harry A. Lawton III sold 84,670 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.16, for a total value of $4,501,057.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 606,842 shares of the company's stock, valued at $32,259,720.72. This trade represents a 12.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Kurt D. Barton sold 1,884 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.81, for a total value of $101,378.04. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,562 shares in the company, valued at $2,828,361.22. The trade was a 3.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 222,348 shares of company stock worth $11,959,621. 0.65% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Tractor Supply

Tractor Supply Company NASDAQ: TSCO is a specialty retailer focused on products for the home, farm, ranch and outdoors. The company operates a network of physical retail locations complemented by an e-commerce platform, offering a one-stop source of supplies and equipment for customers with rural and suburban lifestyles. Its merchandise assortment targets a range of needs, from animal and livestock care to maintenance, outdoor power equipment, and seasonal products.

Product categories include animal feed and supplies, pet products, fencing and fencing supplies, equine equipment, lawn and garden tools, work clothing and footwear, and small agricultural and outdoor power equipment.

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