LPL Financial LLC Increases Stake in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) by 3.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 85,207 shares of the technology retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,165 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in Best Buy were worth $6,669,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of BBY. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Best Buy by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,476,302 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $599,675,000 after purchasing an additional 530,795 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Best Buy by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,524,178 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $362,884,000 after acquiring an additional 449,408 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Best Buy by 4.8% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,672,121 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $333,796,000 after purchasing an additional 168,940 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of Best Buy by 15.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,979,589 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $238,993,000 after buying an additional 402,934 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its position in shares of Best Buy by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,953,773 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $242,926,000 after buying an additional 54,041 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

Best Buy Stock Down 1.3 %

Best Buy stock opened at $75.93 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.98. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $60.78 and a fifty-two week high of $93.32. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $80.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.75.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 29th. The technology retailer reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.16. Best Buy had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 51.95%. The firm had revenue of $9.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.52 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.54 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Best Buy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 19th will be given a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 18th. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Credit Suisse Group cut their price objective on Best Buy from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group dropped their target price on Best Buy from $87.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Best Buy from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Best Buy news, Chairman Richard M. Schulze sold 250,000 shares of Best Buy stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.90, for a total value of $20,725,000.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 390,148 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,343,269.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Chairman Richard M. Schulze sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.24, for a total transaction of $8,524,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 349,448 shares in the company, valued at $29,786,947.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Richard M. Schulze sold 250,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.90, for a total value of $20,725,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 390,148 shares in the company, valued at $32,343,269.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 384,191 shares of company stock valued at $32,028,728 in the last quarter. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Best Buy

Best Buy Co, Inc engages in the retail of technology products in the United States and Canada. The company operates in two segments, Domestic and International. Its stores provide computing and mobile phone products, such as desktops, notebooks, and peripherals; mobile phones comprising related mobile network carrier commissions; networking products; tablets covering e-readers; smartwatches; and consumer electronics consisting of digital imaging, health and fitness products, home theater, portable audio comprising headphones and portable speakers, and smart home products.