Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) CAO Mathew Watson Sells 2,951 Shares

Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) CAO Mathew Watson sold 2,951 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.65, for a total value of $214,390.15. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Mathew Watson also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, March 14th, Mathew Watson sold 3,182 shares of Best Buy stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.29, for a total transaction of $226,844.78.

Best Buy Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:BBY opened at $74.78 on Thursday. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $69.29 and a 12-month high of $103.71. The business has a 50 day moving average of $82.84 and a 200-day moving average of $88.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a market cap of $15.81 billion, a PE ratio of 12.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.43.

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

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This is a boost from Best Buy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.08%. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 88.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on BBY shares. Bank of America dropped their target price on Best Buy from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and set a $90.00 target price on shares of Best Buy in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered 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 note on Tuesday, March 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Best Buy from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Best Buy from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $93.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Best Buy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BBY. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Best Buy in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Best Buy during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Best Buy by 186.9% in the 4th quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 373 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Best Buy by 18,700.0% during the 4th quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 376 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 374 shares during the last quarter. 80.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.