Bell Asset Management Ltd Sells 38,945 Shares of Tractor Supply Company $TSCO

Bell Asset Management Ltd trimmed its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply Company (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 43.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 51,039 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 38,945 shares during the period. Bell Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $2,903,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of TSCO. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Tractor Supply by 1.6% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 67,679,109 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,571,427,000 after purchasing an additional 1,047,687 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 23,002,120 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,213,822,000 after purchasing an additional 150,392 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,367,775 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $808,341,000 after purchasing an additional 316,595 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 123.4% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,079,313 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $795,735,000 after buying an additional 8,329,462 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Select Equity Group L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 41.9% in 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 buying an additional 3,753,414 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.72% of the company’s stock.

Tractor Supply Stock Down 0.7%

Tractor Supply stock opened at $50.16 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $26.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Tractor Supply Company has a twelve month low of $46.85 and a twelve month high of $63.99. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $52.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.60.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The specialty retailer reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by ($0.03). Tractor Supply had a return on equity of 44.36% and a net margin of 7.06%.The firm 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 firm earned $0.44 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Tractor Supply Company will post 2.17 EPS for the current year.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 24th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. This is a boost from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 24th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on TSCO. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price target on shares of Tractor Supply from $70.00 to $63.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Zacks Research cut shares of Tractor Supply from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Tractor Supply in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.78.

Insider Transactions at Tractor Supply

In other Tractor Supply news, CFO Kurt D. Barton sold 1,929 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.94, for a total value of $104,050.26. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,413,059.84. This represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Colin Yankee sold 11,170 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.35, for a total value of $618,259.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 45,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,519,255.25. This represents a 19.71% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 222,348 shares of company stock worth $11,959,621. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Tractor Supply 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.