Tractor Supply Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock investors acquired 6,683 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 65% compared to the typical daily volume of 4,049 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on TSCO. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Tractor Supply from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Tractor Supply from $44.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays cut their target price on Tractor Supply from $262.00 to $52.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Tractor Supply from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $59.22.

Insider Activity at Tractor Supply

In related news, EVP Melissa Kersey sold 9,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.17, for a total transaction of $494,481.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 34,961 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,858,876.37. This represents a 21.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,787 shares in the company, valued at $1,833,792.03. This represents a 10.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 137,993 shares of company stock valued at $7,538,068 over the last quarter. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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Institutional Investors Weigh In On Tractor Supply

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of TSCO. Smithfield Trust Co lifted its stake in Tractor Supply by 286.2% in the 4th quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 475 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC increased its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 944.4% in the fourth quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 470 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares during the last quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC lifted its position in Tractor Supply by 400.0% during the fourth quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC now owns 500 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC boosted its stake in Tractor Supply by 400.0% during the fourth quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC now owns 500 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Archer Investment Corp grew its holdings in Tractor Supply by 400.0% in the 4th quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 500 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.72% of the company's stock.

Tractor Supply Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ TSCO traded up $0.22 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $49.57. The company had a trading volume of 2,893,613 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,091,734. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.88. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $54.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. Tractor Supply has a fifty-two week low of $48.30 and a fifty-two week high of $61.53.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.28 by ($1.84). Tractor Supply had a return on equity of 49.01% and a net margin of 7.40%. On average, research analysts expect that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Tractor Supply announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 13th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a $0.92 dividend. This is an increase from Tractor Supply's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. Tractor Supply's dividend payout ratio is currently 45.10%.

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.