Best Buy Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:BBY)

Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) was the target of some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock investors bought 46,788 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 249% compared to the average volume of 13,422 call options.

Best Buy Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of BBY opened at $88.58 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $91.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $90.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a market cap of $18.94 billion, a PE ratio of 15.14, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.44. Best Buy has a 1 year low of $69.29 and a 1 year high of $103.71.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 26th. The technology retailer reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by ($0.04). Best Buy had a net margin of 3.01% and a return on equity of 45.93%. The company had revenue of $9.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.63 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Best Buy will post 6.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Best Buy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.24%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. Best Buy’s payout ratio is 64.27%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Matthew M. Bilunas sold 69,166 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.46, for a total transaction of $6,049,258.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 92,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,052,442.20. This represents a 42.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.59% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BBY. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its position in Best Buy by 190.9% in the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 320 shares of the technology retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Best Buy in the second quarter valued at about $35,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Best Buy during the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. LRI Investments LLC grew its holdings in Best Buy by 632.1% during the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 388 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. grew its holdings in Best Buy by 53.3% during the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 492 shares of the technology retailer’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Best Buy from $109.00 to $101.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Best Buy from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Friday, August 30th. BNP Paribas raised Best Buy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on Best Buy from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Best Buy from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $101.06.

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.