Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) Short Interest Update

Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,720,000 shares, a drop of 6.5% from the March 15th total of 15,740,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,070,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.8 days. Currently, 7.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Best Buy Stock Down 0.8 %

Best Buy stock traded down $0.60 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $75.69. The stock had a trading volume of 1,169,030 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,017,853. The stock has a market cap of $16.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.49. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $77.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Best Buy has a 12 month low of $62.30 and a 12 month high of $86.11.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The technology retailer reported $2.72 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.51 by $0.21. Best Buy had a return on equity of 48.45% and a net margin of 2.86%. The company had revenue of $14.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.61 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Best Buy will post 6.03 EPS for the current year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st were paid a $0.94 dividend. This is a boost from Best Buy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 20th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.97%. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BBY has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group raised Best Buy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $85.00 to $95.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Best Buy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $89.00 to $101.00 in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. TheStreet upgraded shares of Best Buy from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Best Buy from $67.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Finally, Wedbush raised their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $84.60.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Mathew Watson sold 2,505 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.80, for a total value of $204,909.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 25,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,097,188.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Best Buy news, CEO Corie S. Barry sold 28,042 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.80, for a total transaction of $2,293,835.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 429,159 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,105,206.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Mathew Watson sold 2,505 shares of Best Buy stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.80, for a total value of $204,909.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,097,188.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 51,394 shares of company stock worth $4,206,247 over the last 90 days. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Best Buy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BBY. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Best Buy by 549.1% during the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 357 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. Bfsg LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Best Buy during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Best Buy by 69.5% during the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 322 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Best Buy during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Best Buy during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. 80.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.