Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) Increases Dividend to $0.92 Per Share

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 13th,RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be given a dividend of 0.92 per share by the specialty retailer on Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.46%. This is a boost from Tractor Supply’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22.

Tractor Supply has raised its dividend payment by an average of 28.4% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 14 consecutive years. Tractor Supply has a payout ratio of 36.7% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Tractor Supply to earn $2.42 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.88 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 36.4%.

Tractor Supply Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ TSCO opened at $56.99 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 1.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.94, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $54.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $55.27. Tractor Supply has a 52-week low of $46.19 and a 52-week high of $61.53.

Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by ($1.84). Tractor Supply had a return on equity of 49.01% and a net margin of 7.40%. Sell-side analysts expect that Tractor Supply will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America upped their target price on Tractor Supply from $44.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Tractor Supply in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James increased their price objective on Tractor Supply from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Tractor Supply from $65.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Loop Capital increased their price objective on Tractor Supply from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.22.

Tractor Supply announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty retailer to reacquire up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Tractor Supply

In related news, CEO Harry A. Lawton III sold 88,095 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.59, for a total value of $4,809,106.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 488,852 shares in the company, valued at $26,686,430.68. The trade was a 15.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Melissa Kersey sold 9,300 shares of Tractor Supply stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.17, for a total value of $494,481.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 34,961 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,858,876.37. The trade was a 21.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 121,997 shares of company stock worth $6,635,785 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

About Tractor Supply

Tractor Supply Company operates as a rural lifestyle retailer in the United States. The company offers various merchandise, including livestock and equine feed and equipment, poultry, fencing, and sprayers and chemicals; food, treats, and equipment for dogs, cats, and other small animals, as well as dog wellness products; seasonal and recreation products comprising tractors and riders, lawn and garden, bird feeding, power equipment, and other recreational products; truck, tool, and hardware products, such as truck accessories, trailers, generators, lubricants, batteries, and hardware and tools; and clothing, gift, and décor products consist of clothing, footwear, toys, snacks, and decorative merchandise.