MV Capital Management Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

MV Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) by 16.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,148 shares of the technology retailer’s stock after selling 218 shares during the quarter. MV Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Best Buy were worth $98,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its position in Best Buy by 971.9% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 343 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Best Buy in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. LRI Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Best Buy by 632.1% in the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 388 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Best Buy during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont increased its holdings in Best Buy by 1,200.0% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 416 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.96% of the company’s stock.

Best Buy Trading Down 3.5 %

NYSE BBY opened at $72.28 on Friday. The firm 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. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $69.29 and a 52 week high of $103.71. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $82.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.31.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The technology retailer reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $13.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.69 billion. Best Buy had a return on equity of 45.93% and a net margin of 3.01%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.72 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Best Buy from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group set a $105.00 price target on Best Buy in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group dropped their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of Best Buy in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Loop Capital reaffirmed a “negative” rating on shares of Best Buy in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned 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.

Insider Transactions at Best Buy

In other news, CEO Corie S. Barry purchased 13,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $72.92 per share, with a total value of $984,420.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 378,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,620,637.60. The trade was a 3.70 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Matthew M. Bilunas sold 51,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.20, for a total transaction of $3,784,200.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 55,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,144,515.20. The trade was a 47.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 78,355 shares of company stock worth $5,767,213 over the last 90 days. 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.