Ceredex Value Advisors LLC Sells 78,800 Shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Ceredex Value Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) by 21.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 292,000 shares of the technology retailer’s stock after selling 78,800 shares during the quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC owned 0.14% of Best Buy worth $30,438,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Best Buy by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 576,416 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $47,283,000 after acquiring an additional 2,235 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC purchased a new stake in Best Buy during the 1st quarter valued at $1,723,000. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. bought a new position in shares of Best Buy during the 1st quarter valued at $216,000. Diversify Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Best Buy in the 1st quarter worth $210,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Best Buy by 119.9% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 184,635 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $14,559,000 after acquiring an additional 100,689 shares during the period. 80.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Best Buy Stock Performance

BBY opened at $90.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.68, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a fifty day moving average of $96.82 and a 200 day moving average of $87.04. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $62.30 and a fifty-two week high of $103.71.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 29th. The technology retailer reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $9.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.23 billion. Best Buy had a return on equity of 47.19% and a net margin of 2.96%. The business’s revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Best Buy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 19th were given a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.14%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 19th. Best Buy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.83%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on BBY shares. Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on Best Buy from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of Best Buy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Best Buy from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Best Buy from $95.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Melius Research initiated coverage on Best Buy in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $100.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.71.

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.