Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) Cut to “Sell” at Wall Street Zen

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

TSCO has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Argus cut their price objective on shares of Tractor Supply from $67.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Tractor Supply from $67.00 to $59.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $61.00 price objective (down from $66.00) on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $57.00 price target on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.78.

Tractor Supply Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of Tractor Supply stock opened at $52.96 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market cap of $27.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.74. Tractor Supply has a 52-week low of $46.85 and a 52-week high of $63.99. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $52.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $55.26.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last released its quarterly earnings results 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). Tractor Supply had a net margin of 7.06% and a return on equity of 44.36%. The business had revenue of $3.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.44 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Harry A. Lawton III sold 84,670 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.16, for a total transaction of $4,501,057.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 606,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,259,720.72. This trade represents a 12.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert D. Mills sold 62,950 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.12, for a total value of $3,406,854.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 122,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,647,776.08. The trade was a 33.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 222,348 shares of company stock worth $11,959,621 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Tractor Supply

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 123.4% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,079,313 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $795,735,000 after acquiring an additional 8,329,462 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Tractor Supply in the fourth quarter worth approximately $303,862,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Tractor Supply by 719.1% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,508,661 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $256,408,000 after buying an additional 3,958,205 shares during the period. Select Equity Group L.P. boosted its holdings in Tractor Supply by 41.9% during the 2nd quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 12,713,409 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $670,887,000 after acquiring an additional 3,753,414 shares during the period. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. increased its stake in Tractor Supply by 505.1% in the 3rd quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 4,329,556 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $246,222,000 after purchasing an additional 3,614,097 shares during the period. 98.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Tractor Supply Company Profile

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.