Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Wednesday.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on BBY. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Best Buy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Best Buy from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Best Buy from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Best Buy from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group upped their price target on shares of Best Buy from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $102.41.

Best Buy Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:BBY opened at $101.34 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $21.86 billion, a PE ratio of 17.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Best Buy has a twelve month low of $62.30 and a twelve month high of $103.71. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $91.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $84.65.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 29th. The technology retailer reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $9.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.23 billion. Best Buy had a net margin of 2.96% and a return on equity of 47.19%. The company’s revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.22 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Best Buy will post 6.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Richard M. Schulze sold 691,328 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.46, for a total value of $61,154,874.88. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 14,911,525 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,319,073,501.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Best Buy news, EVP Jason J. Bonfig sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.02, for a total value of $290,570.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 50,714 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,210,276.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Richard M. Schulze sold 691,328 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.46, for a total transaction of $61,154,874.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 14,911,525 shares in the company, valued at $1,319,073,501.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,383,370 shares of company stock worth $122,233,276 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.59% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BBY. Ninety One UK Ltd purchased a new position in Best Buy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $121,325,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in Best Buy by 4,337.6% in the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,099,495 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $92,677,000 after purchasing an additional 1,074,718 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Best Buy by 55.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,863,291 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $241,347,000 after purchasing an additional 1,024,824 shares in the last quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in Best Buy by 11,586.7% in the 4th quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 686,128 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $53,710,000 after purchasing an additional 680,257 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB purchased a new position in shares of Best Buy during the 1st quarter worth about $43,522,000. 80.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.