Hancock Whitney Corp Purchases 7,708 Shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)

Hancock Whitney Corp raised its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) by 395.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 9,655 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 7,708 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in Tractor Supply were worth $512,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in TSCO. Smithfield Trust Co grew its position in Tractor Supply by 286.2% during the 4th quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 475 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC grew its holdings in shares of Tractor Supply by 944.4% in the fourth quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 470 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares during the last quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Tractor Supply by 400.0% in the fourth quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC now owns 500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC raised its holdings in Tractor Supply by 400.0% during the 4th 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. Finally, Archer Investment Corp raised its holdings in Tractor Supply by 400.0% during the 4th 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. 98.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Tractor Supply

In other Tractor Supply news, CEO Harry A. Lawton III sold 88,095 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.59, for a total value of $4,809,106.05. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 488,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,686,430.68. This trade represents a 15.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Matthew L. Rubin sold 3,850 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.69, for a total value of $222,106.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,833,792.03. The trade was a 10.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 137,993 shares of company stock worth $7,538,068. 0.65% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Tractor Supply Price Performance

TSCO stock opened at $49.92 on Friday. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average price of $53.04 and a 200-day moving average price of $54.76. Tractor Supply has a 52-week low of $46.85 and a 52-week high of $61.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.47, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.88.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.03). Tractor Supply had a net margin of 7.40% and a return on equity of 49.01%. The company had revenue of $3.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.55 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Tractor Supply declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty retailer to buy up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Tractor Supply Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.37%. This is an increase from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. Tractor Supply’s dividend payout ratio is 45.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on TSCO shares. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $67.00 price objective on shares of Tractor Supply in a research report on Thursday. Guggenheim reduced their price target on Tractor Supply from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Tractor Supply from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on Tractor Supply from $62.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $58.62.

About Tractor Supply

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.