Skylands Capital LLC Purchases 2,275 Shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Skylands Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) by 44.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,400 shares of the technology retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,275 shares during the period. Skylands Capital LLC’s holdings in Best Buy were worth $579,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Best Buy by 549.1% during the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 357 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Bfsg LLC bought a new position in Best Buy in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Best Buy in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Best Buy by 81.9% during the third quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC now owns 411 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hartford Financial Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Best Buy by 56.5% during the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 388 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. 80.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Best Buy Stock Performance

Shares of BBY opened at $74.69 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $78.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $74.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 1.00. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $62.30 and a twelve month high of $86.11. The firm has a market cap of $16.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.18, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.49.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The technology retailer reported $2.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $14.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.58 billion. Best Buy had a net margin of 2.86% and a return on equity of 48.45%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.61 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 21st were paid a $0.94 dividend. This is a boost from Best Buy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 20th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.03%. Best Buy’s payout ratio is presently 66.08%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on BBY shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Best Buy from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Best Buy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $89.00 to $101.00 in a report on Friday, March 22nd. TheStreet raised shares of Best Buy from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. UBS Group increased their price target on Best Buy from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Best Buy from $67.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $84.60.

Insider Transactions at Best Buy

In other news, EVP Kathleen Scarlett sold 5,096 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.80, for a total value of $416,852.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 76,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,235,286.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Corie S. Barry sold 366 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.76, for a total transaction of $27,728.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 431,231 shares in the company, valued at $32,670,060.56. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Kathleen Scarlett sold 5,096 shares of Best Buy stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.80, for a total transaction of $416,852.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 76,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,235,286.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 52,023 shares of company stock valued at $4,253,900 in the last ninety days. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Best Buy Profile

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.