181,326 Shares in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) Purchased by Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 181,326 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $9,621,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Smithfield Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 286.2% during the fourth quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 475 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC raised its stake in Tractor Supply by 944.4% during the 4th quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 470 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC boosted its position in Tractor Supply by 400.0% during the 4th quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC now owns 500 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC grew its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 400.0% in the fourth quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC now owns 500 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Archer Investment Corp increased its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 400.0% during the fourth quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 500 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.72% of the company's stock.

Tractor Supply Trading Up 1.9 %

NASDAQ:TSCO opened at $49.92 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $26.54 billion, a PE ratio of 24.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.88. Tractor Supply has a fifty-two week low of $46.85 and a fifty-two week high of $61.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 0.20. The stock's 50-day moving average is $53.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.76.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.03). Tractor Supply had a net margin of 7.40% and a return on equity of 49.01%. The company had revenue of $3.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.55 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.37%. This is a positive change from Tractor Supply's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. Tractor Supply's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.77%.

Tractor Supply announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, February 13th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty retailer to repurchase up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on TSCO. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $67.00 target price on shares of Tractor Supply in a research report on Thursday. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Tractor Supply from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Tractor Supply from $62.00 to $58.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $56.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Tractor Supply has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $58.62.

Insider Activity at Tractor Supply

In other news, CEO Harry A. Lawton III sold 88,095 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.59, for a total transaction of $4,809,106.05. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 488,852 shares in the company, valued at $26,686,430.68. The trade was a 15.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.69, for a total value of $222,106.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,787 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,833,792.03. The trade was a 10.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 137,993 shares of company stock valued at $7,538,068. Insiders own 0.65% of the company's stock.

Tractor Supply Profile

Tractor Supply Company operates as a rural lifestyle retailer in the United States. The company offers various merchandise, including livestock and equine feed and equipment, poultry, fencing, and sprayers and chemicals; food, treats, and equipment for dogs, cats, and other small animals, as well as dog wellness products; seasonal and recreation products comprising tractors and riders, lawn and garden, bird feeding, power equipment, and other recreational products; truck, tool, and hardware products, such as truck accessories, trailers, generators, lubricants, batteries, and hardware and tools; and clothing, gift, and décor products consist of clothing, footwear, toys, snacks, and decorative merchandise.

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