MML Investors Services LLC Has $4.50 Million Holdings in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

MML Investors Services LLC grew its position in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO - Free Report) by 417.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 84,723 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 68,334 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC's holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $4,495,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smithfield Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 286.2% during the 4th quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 475 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 400.0% during the fourth quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC now owns 500 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Archer Investment Corp lifted 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 last quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 400.0% in the 4th quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC now owns 500 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new position in Tractor Supply in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.72% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Telsey Advisory Group set a $60.00 target price on Tractor Supply in a report on Friday. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Tractor Supply from $44.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Stephens assumed coverage on Tractor Supply in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $56.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Tractor Supply has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $58.02.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Harry A. Lawton III sold 88,095 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.59, for a total transaction of $4,809,106.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 488,852 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,686,430.68. This trade represents a 15.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.69, for a total transaction of $222,106.50. Following 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. Insiders sold a total of 137,993 shares of company stock worth $7,538,068 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.65% of the company's stock.

Tractor Supply Stock Performance

Shares of Tractor Supply stock traded up $0.87 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $49.87. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,464,401 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,113,384. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 1.43. The business's fifty day moving average price is $52.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $54.65. The firm has a market cap of $26.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.88. Tractor Supply has a one year low of $46.85 and a one year high of $61.53.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $3.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.55 billion. Tractor Supply had a return on equity of 49.01% and a net margin of 7.40%. The company's revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.83 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. This is a positive change from Tractor Supply's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Tractor Supply's payout ratio is 45.77%.

Tractor Supply declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 13th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty retailer to buy up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

About Tractor Supply

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.