Westpac Banking Corp Has $3.77 Million Holdings in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Westpac Banking Corp decreased its holdings in shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) by 21.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 43,909 shares of the technology retailer’s stock after selling 11,955 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Best Buy were worth $3,767,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. 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 worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 311 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Best Buy during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Best Buy in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Trust Co. of Vermont lifted its stake in Best Buy by 1,200.0% in the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 416 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 384 shares during the period. Finally, LRI Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Best Buy by 632.1% during the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 388 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on BBY shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Best Buy from $106.00 to $92.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Best Buy from $102.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Best Buy in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Guggenheim lowered their price target on Best Buy from $105.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Best Buy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $93.50.

Insider Transactions at Best Buy

In related news, CAO Mathew Watson sold 2,951 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.65, for a total transaction of $214,390.15. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 21,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,552,603.15. The trade was a 12.13 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Todd G. Hartman sold 4,893 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.65, for a total value of $355,476.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 32,320 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,348,048. This trade represents a 13.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 78,355 shares of company stock worth $5,767,213 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.59% of the company’s stock.

Best Buy Price Performance

NYSE:BBY opened at $75.77 on Thursday. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $69.29 and a 52-week high of $103.71. The company has a market cap of $16.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 1.00. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $81.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $87.76.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The technology retailer reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.18. Best Buy had a return on equity of 45.93% and a net margin of 3.01%. The firm had revenue of $13.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.72 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be given a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. This is an increase from Best Buy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 88.99%.

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.