Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Has $16.45 Million Stock Position in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) by 35.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 191,662 shares of the technology retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 50,353 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.09% of Best Buy worth $16,445,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Stevens Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Best Buy by 228.7% in the 4th quarter. Stevens Capital Management LP now owns 22,625 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $1,941,000 after purchasing an additional 15,741 shares during the period. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc bought a new stake in shares of Best Buy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,293,000. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. grew its position in Best Buy by 48.6% during the fourth quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. now owns 26,400 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $2,265,000 after buying an additional 8,640 shares in the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp increased its stake in Best Buy by 424.0% during the 4th quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 26,200 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $2,248,000 after acquiring an additional 21,200 shares during the period. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Best Buy in the 4th quarter valued at $453,000. 80.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Best Buy from $105.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Best Buy in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Barclays reduced their target price on Best Buy from $95.00 to $89.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Best Buy from $95.00 to $81.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Loop Capital reaffirmed a “negative” rating on shares of Best Buy in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $93.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Matthew M. Bilunas sold 51,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.20, for a total transaction of $3,784,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 55,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,144,515.20. This represents a 47.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 Best Buy stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.65, for a total transaction of $355,476.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 32,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,348,048. This trade represents a 13.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 78,355 shares of company stock worth $5,767,213. Corporate insiders own 0.59% of the company’s stock.

Best Buy Trading Down 3.5 %

BBY opened at $72.28 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $15.28 billion, a PE ratio of 12.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $69.29 and a twelve month high of $103.71. The company has a fifty day moving average of $82.51 and a 200-day moving average of $88.18.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.69 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.72 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. This is a positive change from Best Buy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.26%. Best Buy’s payout ratio is 88.99%.

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.