Merit Financial Group LLC Takes Position in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 5,278 shares of the technology retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $453,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BBY. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in shares of Best Buy by 2.2% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 37,917 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $3,196,000 after acquiring an additional 818 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Best Buy by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 39,595 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $3,337,000 after purchasing an additional 2,184 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in Best Buy by 67.3% in the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 7,120 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $600,000 after purchasing an additional 2,865 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC raised its position in Best Buy by 25.0% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 5,607 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $478,000 after purchasing an additional 1,123 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in Best Buy by 3.9% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 191,851 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $16,603,000 after purchasing an additional 7,123 shares in the last quarter. 80.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Best Buy Trading Up 2.0 %

BBY opened at $85.58 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 1.00. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a one year low of $69.29 and a one year high of $103.71. The company has a market cap of $18.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.63, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.43. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $86.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $90.17.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last announced its quarterly 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). The company had revenue of $9.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.63 billion. Best Buy had a net margin of 3.01% and a return on equity of 45.93%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.29 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Best Buy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 17th were given a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.39%. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on BBY shares. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price objective on Best Buy from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of 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. StockNews.com lowered shares of Best Buy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $95.00 to $89.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of Best Buy in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. One equities 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $101.72.

Insider Buying and Selling at Best Buy

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

Best Buy 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.