SouthState Corp Grows Stock Holdings in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

SouthState Corp grew its stake in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 749.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 30,000 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 26,467 shares during the quarter. SouthState Corp’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $1,592,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of TSCO. Smithfield Trust Co increased its position in 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 purchasing an additional 352 shares during the period. PrairieView Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 400.0% during the fourth quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC now owns 500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC increased its holdings 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 valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. Archer Investment Corp raised its stake in Tractor Supply by 400.0% in the fourth quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new stake in Tractor Supply during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. 98.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Tractor Supply news, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.69, for a total value of $222,106.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Melissa Kersey sold 9,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.17, for a total transaction of $494,481.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 34,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,858,876.37. This trade represents a 21.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 137,993 shares of company stock valued at $7,538,068 in the last three months. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on TSCO shares. Truist Financial cut their price target on Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Tractor Supply from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $67.00 target price on shares of Tractor Supply in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Tractor Supply in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Tractor Supply from $44.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.22.

Tractor Supply Trading Up 2.5 %

NASDAQ TSCO opened at $53.13 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $55.18 and a 200 day moving average of $55.73. The company has a market capitalization of $28.37 billion, a PE ratio of 26.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 0.20. Tractor Supply has a 1 year low of $48.30 and a 1 year high of $61.53.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by ($1.84). Tractor Supply had a return on equity of 49.01% and a net margin of 7.40%. Research analysts forecast that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $0.92 per share. This is a boost from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.93%. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.