Park Avenue Securities LLC Acquires 2,053 Shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its holdings in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) by 24.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,334 shares of the technology retailer’s stock after buying an additional 2,053 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Best Buy were worth $887,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BBY. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Best Buy during the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. LRI Investments LLC increased its holdings in Best Buy by 632.1% in the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 388 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Best Buy in the 3rd quarter worth $44,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Best Buy by 959.6% in the 3rd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 551 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hershey Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Best Buy during the second quarter worth $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.96% of the company’s stock.

Best Buy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BBY opened at $84.54 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $87.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $90.20. The stock has a market cap of $18.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.45, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.43. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $69.29 and a 12 month high of $103.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 26th. The technology retailer reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.30 by ($0.04). Best Buy had a return on equity of 45.93% and a net margin of 3.01%. The company had revenue of $9.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.63 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Best Buy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th were paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.45%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 17th. Best Buy’s payout ratio is 64.27%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Matthew M. Bilunas sold 69,166 shares of Best Buy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.46, for a total value of $6,049,258.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 92,070 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,052,442.20. The trade was a 42.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.59% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on BBY shares. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Best Buy from $109.00 to $101.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Barclays dropped their price target on Best Buy from $95.00 to $89.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Best Buy from $111.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Best Buy from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Best Buy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $101.72.

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.