Prudential Financial Inc. Trims Holdings in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Prudential Financial Inc. lessened its position in shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY - Free Report) by 18.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 116,436 shares of the technology retailer's stock after selling 26,728 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned about 0.05% of Best Buy worth $9,990,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased 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. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Best Buy during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. LRI Investments LLC increased its position in Best Buy by 632.1% during the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 388 shares of the technology retailer's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 335 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Best Buy in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its holdings in Best Buy by 1,200.0% in the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 416 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.96% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on BBY shares. Telsey Advisory Group decreased their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Loop Capital reaffirmed a "negative" rating on shares of Best Buy in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America cut their target price on Best Buy from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Best Buy in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $93.50.

Remove Ads

Best Buy Price Performance

NYSE BBY traded up $0.72 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $75.09. The company's stock had a trading volume of 451,432 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,021,313. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.43. The company's 50-day moving average is $82.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $87.84. 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 1-year low of $69.29 and a 1-year high of $103.71.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The technology retailer reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.18. Best Buy had a return on equity of 45.93% and a net margin of 3.01%. The business had revenue of $13.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.72 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be given a $0.95 dividend. This is a positive change from Best Buy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.06%. Best Buy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 88.99%.

Insider Transactions at Best Buy

In other Best Buy news, insider Todd G. Hartman sold 4,893 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.65, for a total transaction of $355,476.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 32,320 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,348,048. The trade was a 13.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathleen Scarlett sold 6,847 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.65, for a total value of $497,434.55. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 87,389 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,348,810.85. The trade was a 7.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 78,355 shares of company stock valued at $5,767,213 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.59% of the company's stock.

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.