Freedom Investment Management Inc. Boosts Holdings in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Freedom Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) by 27.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,531 shares of the technology retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 540 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Best Buy were worth $217,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in Best Buy by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,538 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $218,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC boosted its stake in shares of Best Buy by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 43,215 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $3,708,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its position in shares of Best Buy by 19.7% during the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 861 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $74,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance raised its stake in Best Buy by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 3,002 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Yousif Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Best Buy by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 29,904 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $2,566,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.96% of the company’s stock.

Best Buy Stock Performance

NYSE:BBY opened at $63.40 on Wednesday. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.99 and a fifty-two week high of $103.71. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $73.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $83.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.84, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.42.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The technology retailer reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $13.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.72 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast 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 was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 25th. This is a boost from Best Buy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 88.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BBY has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Best Buy from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of Best Buy in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $70.00 target price (down from $93.00) on shares of Best Buy in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Best Buy in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Best Buy from $95.00 to $89.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Best Buy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $91.28.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Corie S. Barry acquired 13,500 shares of Best Buy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $72.92 per share, for a total transaction of $984,420.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 378,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,620,637.60. The trade was a 3.70 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 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 value of $355,476.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now 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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 78,355 shares of company stock valued at $5,767,213. 0.59% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Best Buy Company 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.