Van ECK Associates Corp Cuts Stake in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Van ECK Associates Corp reduced its stake in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY - Free Report) by 22.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 72,641 shares of the technology retailer's stock after selling 21,064 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp's holdings in Best Buy were worth $7,504,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ninety One UK Ltd acquired a new position in Best Buy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $121,325,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in Best Buy by 4,337.6% in the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,099,495 shares of the technology retailer's stock valued at $92,677,000 after buying an additional 1,074,718 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Best Buy by 55.7% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,863,291 shares of the technology retailer's stock valued at $241,347,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024,824 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of Best Buy in the first quarter valued at about $43,522,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Best Buy by 55.4% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,379,195 shares of the technology retailer's stock valued at $116,252,000 after acquiring an additional 491,781 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.96% of the company's stock.

Best Buy Price Performance

NYSE:BBY traded up $1.16 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $90.56. 1,357,592 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,988,441. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $97.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $87.45. The company has a market cap of $19.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.30 and a 52-week high of $103.71.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 29th. The technology retailer reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.18. Best Buy had a return on equity of 47.19% and a net margin of 2.96%. The business had revenue of $9.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.22 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Best Buy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 19th were paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.15%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 19th. Best Buy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Best Buy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Best Buy from $101.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 30th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Best Buy from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Best Buy presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $103.71.

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.