Natixis Advisors L.P. Acquires 19,119 Shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Natixis Advisors L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) by 23.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 101,340 shares of the technology retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,119 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P.’s holdings in Best Buy were worth $7,932,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. HS Management Partners LLC bought a new stake in Best Buy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $103,854,000. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Best Buy by 120.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,336,071 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $92,819,000 after buying an additional 729,605 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in Best Buy by 36.2% during the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,586,442 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $179,680,000 after buying an additional 687,556 shares in the last quarter. Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC raised its position in Best Buy by 426.7% in the 3rd quarter. Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC now owns 740,608 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $51,450,000 after buying an additional 600,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ceredex Value Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Best Buy by 73.1% during the 4th quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC now owns 1,228,980 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $97,339,000 after acquiring an additional 518,920 shares in the last quarter. 80.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Best Buy news, insider Todd G. Hartman sold 3,973 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.80, for a total value of $324,991.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 25,912 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,119,601.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Corie S. Barry sold 366 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.76, for a total value of $27,728.16. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 431,231 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,670,060.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Todd G. Hartman sold 3,973 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.80, for a total transaction of $324,991.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 25,912 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,119,601.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 52,023 shares of company stock worth $4,253,900. 0.59% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BBY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. TheStreet raised shares of Best Buy from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Best Buy from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Best Buy from $95.00 to $94.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Best Buy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $89.00 to $101.00 in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Best Buy from $69.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Best Buy has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $84.00.

Best Buy Stock Performance

NYSE BBY opened at $74.16 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $16.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company’s 50 day moving average is $77.62 and its 200-day moving average is $74.33. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $62.30 and a 12-month high of $86.11.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The technology retailer reported $2.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by $0.21. Best Buy had a return on equity of 48.45% and a net margin of 2.86%. The firm had revenue of $14.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.58 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.61 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st were issued a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.07%. This is an increase from Best Buy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 20th. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.08%.

About Best Buy

Best Buy Co, Inc engages in the retail of technology products in the United States, Canada, 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, portable audio comprising headphones and portable speakers, and smart home products, as well as home theaters, which includes home theater accessories, soundbars, and televisions.