Legato Capital Management LLC Buys New Shares in Best Buy Co., Inc. $BBY

Legato Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 30,655 shares of the technology retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,052,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BBY. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Best Buy by 99.8% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,997,871 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $525,120,000 after buying an additional 3,496,254 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Best Buy by 293.6% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,052,805 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $70,464,000 after buying an additional 785,294 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Best Buy by 14,865.2% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 771,159 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $51,614,000 after buying an additional 766,006 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Best Buy in the third quarter valued at about $55,475,000. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Best Buy by 2,683.4% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 692,687 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $52,381,000 after buying an additional 667,801 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on BBY shares. Wedbush raised their price target on shares of Best Buy from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price target on shares of Best Buy from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Best Buy from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $59.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Piper Sandler restated a “buy” rating on shares of Best Buy in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $78.00 price target on shares of Best Buy in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $70.80.

Best Buy News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Best Buy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Best Buy is being viewed as likely to post solid first-quarter results, with analysts expecting in-line comparable sales and year-over-year earnings growth, which could help support the stock if the company meets those expectations. Best Buy Poised for In-Line First-Quarter Comparable Sales, Wedbush Says
• Positive Sentiment: Recent momentum has improved, with the stock outperforming over the past week even though it remains down year to date, suggesting investors may be positioning for the upcoming report. A Look At Best Buy Valuation As Earnings Expectations And Cautious Sentiment Shape The May 28 Report
• Neutral Sentiment: New back-to-school-style promotions in Canada, such as BMO’s student tech reward tied to Best Buy Canada, may help traffic, but the announcement appears more promotional than material for near-term earnings. Is Best Buy’s Student Tech Perks Masking Deeper Supply Chain And Leadership Questions?
• Negative Sentiment: Investor caution is rising because Best Buy is dealing with product shortages and an upcoming CEO transition, both of which could cloud the earnings outlook and pressure sentiment if management gives a conservative forecast. Is Best Buy’s Student Tech Perks Masking Deeper Supply Chain And Leadership Questions?
• Negative Sentiment: Several previews note that Best Buy may not have the best setup for an earnings beat, which could limit upside if results only match expectations rather than exceed them. Best Buy (BBY) Q1 Earnings Preview: What You Should Know Beyond the Headline Estimates

Best Buy Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of BBY opened at $61.53 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $12.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $55.10 and a 12 month high of $84.99. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $61.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $67.28.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 3rd. The technology retailer reported $2.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $13.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.96 billion. Best Buy had a net margin of 2.56% and a return on equity of 49.17%. The company’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.58 earnings per share. Best Buy has set its FY 2027 guidance at 6.300-6.600 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Best Buy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 24th were issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 24th. This is a positive change from Best Buy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.2%. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.19%.

Insider Activity at Best Buy

In other news, EVP Kathleen Scarlett sold 8,049 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.02, for a total transaction of $515,296.98. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 102,669 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,572,869.38. This trade represents a 7.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jason J. Bonfig sold 6,336 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.02, for a total transaction of $405,630.72. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 79,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,066,350.74. The trade was a 7.41% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 77,247 shares of company stock valued at $4,945,353. Insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

About Best Buy

Best Buy Co, Inc is a leading North American consumer electronics retailer that sells a broad range of products including computers, mobile phones, televisions and home theater systems, major appliances, smart-home devices, gaming hardware and software, wearables and related accessories. The company operates through a mix of large-format stores, smaller specialty locations and an e-commerce platform, offering national and private-brand merchandise from major consumer-technology manufacturers as well as third-party sellers.

Beyond product retailing, Best Buy provides a suite of services aimed at installation, repair and ongoing technical support.