National Bank of Canada FI Trims Holdings in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

National Bank of Canada FI reduced its stake in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY - Free Report) by 82.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 95,888 shares of the technology retailer's stock after selling 441,998 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI's holdings in Best Buy were worth $8,227,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its holdings in Best Buy by 971.9% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 343 shares of the technology retailer's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Best Buy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Best Buy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Trust Co. of Vermont lifted its stake in Best Buy by 1,200.0% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 416 shares of the technology retailer's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Best Buy by 632.1% in the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 388 shares of the technology retailer's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the period. 80.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Best Buy Trading Down 7.4 %

BBY stock traded down $4.71 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $58.94. The company had a trading volume of 1,308,326 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,198,828. The stock has a market cap of $12.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.11, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.42. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $54.99 and a 52 week high of $103.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $78.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $85.98.

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

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 given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This is a positive change from Best Buy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.45%. Best Buy's dividend payout ratio is presently 88.99%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Best Buy news, CAO Mathew Watson sold 3,182 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.29, for a total value of $226,844.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 19,218 shares in the company, valued at $1,370,051.22. This trade represents a 14.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Matthew M. Bilunas sold 51,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.20, for a total value of $3,784,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 55,856 shares in the company, valued at $4,144,515.20. This trade represents a 47.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 78,355 shares of company stock worth $5,767,213. 0.59% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Best Buy from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Best Buy from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wedbush reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Best Buy in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Best Buy from $95.00 to $89.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Best Buy from $81.00 to $64.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $91.28.

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.