Long Road Investment Counsel LLC Has $637,000 Stake in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Long Road Investment Counsel LLC raised its stake in Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 400.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,000 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 9,600 shares during the quarter. Long Road Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $637,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of TSCO. Smithfield Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 286.2% in the fourth quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 475 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC grew its stake in Tractor Supply by 400.0% in 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 lifted its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 400.0% in 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 last quarter. Archer Investment Corp lifted its position in shares of Tractor Supply by 400.0% in the fourth quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Tractor Supply in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. 98.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Tractor Supply Stock Up 2.5 %

TSCO stock opened at $53.13 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $55.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $55.73. Tractor Supply has a fifty-two week low of $48.30 and a fifty-two week high of $61.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 1.43. The company has a market cap of $28.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.85.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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%. On average, research analysts expect that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Tractor Supply announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, February 13th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty retailer to buy up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a $0.92 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This is a positive change from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.93%. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.10%.

Insider Activity

In other Tractor Supply news, EVP Colin Yankee sold 24,602 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.15, for a total transaction of $1,332,198.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 33,645 shares in the company, valued at $1,821,876.75. This represents a 42.24 % 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 the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.69, for a total value of $222,106.50. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 31,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,833,792.03. This represents a 10.80 % 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 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Tractor Supply in a report on Friday, January 31st. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Tractor Supply from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Tractor Supply from $65.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Tractor Supply from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $67.00 price objective on shares of Tractor Supply in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Tractor Supply presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.22.

Tractor Supply Company Profile

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.