Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

Common Stock

The Company’s common stock trades on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol, “TSCO.”

As of January 23, 2021, the number of record holders of our common stock was 665 (excluding individual participants in nominee security position listings), and the estimated number of beneficial holders of our common stock was approximately 300,000.

Dividends

We paid cash dividends totaling $174.7 million and $162.7 million in fiscal 2020 and 2019, respectively. In fiscal 2020, we declared and paid cash dividends to stockholders of $1.50 per common share outstanding as compared to $1.36 per common share outstanding in fiscal 2019. These payments reflect an increase in the quarterly dividend in the third quarter of fiscal 2020 to $0.40 per share from $0.35 per share and an increase in the quarterly dividend in the second quarter of fiscal 2019 from $0.31 per share.

On January 27, 2021, the Company’s Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.52 per share of the Company’s outstanding common stock. The dividend will be paid on March 9, 2021, to stockholders of record as of the close of business on February 22, 2021.

It is the present intention of the Company’s Board of Directors to continue to pay a quarterly cash dividend; however, the declaration and payment of future dividends will be determined by the Company’s Board of Directors in its sole discretion and will depend upon the earnings, financial condition, and capital needs of the Company, along with any other factors which the Company’s Board of Directors deem relevant.

Index

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

The Company’s Board of Directors has authorized common stock repurchases under a share repurchase program which was announced in February 2007. The authorization amount of the program, which has been increased from time to time, is currently authorized for up to $4.5 billion, exclusive of any fees, commissions or other expenses related to such repurchases. The share repurchase program does not have an expiration date. As of December 26, 2020, the Company had remaining authorization under the share repurchase program of $1.14 billion, exclusive of any fees, commissions or other expenses. Additionally, the Company withholds shares from vested restricted stock units and performance-based restricted share units to satisfy employees’ minimum statutory tax withholding requirements. Stock purchase activity during fiscal 2020 is set forth in the table below:

(a) The total number of shares purchased and average price paid per share include shares withheld from vested stock awards to satisfy employees’ minimum statutory tax withholding requirements of 57,053 during the first quarter, 22,102 during the second quarter, 2,305 during the third quarter, and 486 during the fourth quarter.

We expect to implement the balance of the repurchase program through purchases made from time to time either in the open market or through private transactions, in accordance with regulations of the SEC and other applicable legal requirements. The timing and amount of any common stock repurchased under the program will depend on a variety of factors including price, corporate and regulatory requirements, capital availability, and other market conditions.

Any additional stock repurchase programs will be subject to the discretion of our Board of Directors and will depend upon earnings, financial condition, and capital needs of the Company, along with any other factors which the Board of Directors deem relevant. The program may be limited, temporarily paused, or terminated at any time, without prior notice.

Index

STOCK PERFORMANCE GRAPH

This performance graph shall not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) or otherwise subject to the liabilities under that Section and shall not be deemed to be incorporated by reference into any filing of Tractor Supply Company under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act.

The following graph compares the cumulative total stockholder return on our common stock from December 26, 2015 to December 26, 2020 (the Company’s fiscal year-end), with the cumulative total returns of the S&P 500 Index and the S&P Retail Index over the same period. The comparison assumes that $100 was invested on December 26, 2015, in our common stock and in each of the foregoing indices and in each case assumes reinvestment of dividends. The historical stock price performance shown on this graph is not indicative of future performance.

Index