Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) Position Reduced by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. decreased its position in shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 574,181 shares of the technology retailer’s stock after selling 2,861 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. owned 0.27% of Best Buy worth $44,947,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its position in Best Buy by 29.2% in the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 5,547 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $504,000 after buying an additional 1,252 shares during the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC grew its position in Best Buy by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 39,097 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $3,554,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Aviva PLC grew its position in Best Buy by 31.1% during the 1st quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 105,369 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $9,578,000 after purchasing an additional 24,977 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC purchased a new position in Best Buy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $499,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in Best Buy by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 5,144 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $468,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Best Buy

In other news, CEO Corie S. Barry sold 366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.76, for a total transaction of $27,728.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 431,231 shares in the company, valued at $32,670,060.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Corie S. Barry sold 366 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.76, for a total value of $27,728.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 431,231 shares in the company, valued at $32,670,060.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Todd G. Hartman sold 3,973 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.80, for a total transaction of $324,991.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 25,912 shares in the company, valued at $2,119,601.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 52,023 shares of company stock worth $4,253,900. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Best Buy Price Performance

Shares of Best Buy stock opened at $76.15 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.49. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $62.30 and a 1-year high of $86.11. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $77.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $73.89.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 29th. The technology retailer reported $2.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.51 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $14.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.58 billion. Best Buy had a net margin of 2.86% and a return on equity of 48.45%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.61 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st were given a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.94%. This is a positive change from Best Buy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 20th. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on BBY shares. Wedbush lifted their target price on shares of Best Buy from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. TheStreet raised shares of Best Buy from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Best Buy from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Best Buy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $89.00 to $101.00 in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Best Buy from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $84.60.

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.