Marks Group Wealth Management Inc Makes New Investment in Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY)

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 3,344 shares of the technology retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $287,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BBY. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Best Buy by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,164,953 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $636,840,000 after purchasing an additional 241,988 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Best Buy by 2.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,852,980 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $499,954,000 after buying an additional 120,185 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates lifted its holdings in shares of Best Buy by 1.8% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 3,440,215 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $355,374,000 after buying an additional 62,452 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Best Buy by 3.3% in the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,388,151 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $143,396,000 after acquiring an additional 44,693 shares during the period. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in shares of Best Buy by 5.6% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,160,614 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $119,892,000 after acquiring an additional 61,119 shares during the last quarter. 80.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Matthew M. Bilunas sold 69,166 shares of Best Buy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.46, for a total value of $6,049,258.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly 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 through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.59% of the company’s stock.

Best Buy Stock Down 1.4 %

BBY opened at $86.79 on Thursday. Best Buy Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $69.29 and a twelve month high of $103.71. The firm has a market cap of $18.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.84, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.43. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $85.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $90.06. 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 (NYSE:BBY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 26th. The technology retailer reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.30 by ($0.04). Best Buy had a return on equity of 45.93% and a net margin of 3.01%. The firm had revenue of $9.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.63 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.29 earnings per share. Best Buy’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Best Buy Co., Inc. will post 6.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Best Buy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Shareholders 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.33%. Best Buy’s payout ratio is 64.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on BBY. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Best Buy from $123.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 price objective on shares of Best Buy in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Guggenheim decreased their target price on Best Buy from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Best Buy from $109.00 to $101.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Best Buy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Best Buy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $101.72.

About Best Buy

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.