Insider Selling: Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) CAO Sells 2,951 Shares of Stock

Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY - Get Free Report) CAO Mathew Watson sold 2,951 shares of Best Buy stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.65, for a total transaction of $214,390.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 21,371 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,552,603.15. This trade represents a 12.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Mathew Watson also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, March 14th, Mathew Watson sold 3,182 shares of Best Buy stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.29, for a total value of $226,844.78.

Best Buy Stock Performance

Shares of BBY stock traded down $2.59 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $72.28. 2,547,536 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,050,896. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $82.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.25. The company has a market cap of $15.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.22. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $69.29 and a 12-month high of $103.71.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The technology retailer reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $13.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.69 billion. Best Buy had a net margin of 3.01% and a return on equity of 45.93%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.72 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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Best Buy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. This is a positive change from Best Buy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Best Buy's dividend payout ratio is presently 88.99%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Best Buy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BBY. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its position in shares of Best Buy by 971.9% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 343 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Best Buy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Best Buy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Best Buy by 186.9% during the fourth quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 373 shares of the technology retailer's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Best Buy by 18,700.0% in the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 376 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 374 shares in the last quarter. 80.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on BBY. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Best Buy from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wedbush reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Best Buy in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Best Buy from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Best Buy from $95.00 to $89.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, UBS Group set a $105.00 target price on shares of Best Buy in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Best Buy presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $93.50.

Best Buy Company Profile

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.