Wealth Quarterback LLC Reduces Position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Wealth Quarterback LLC trimmed its position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,542 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 215 shares during the period. Wealth Quarterback LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $1,028,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quent Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 9.6% during the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 4,389 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in Starbucks by 306.2% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 59,019 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $5,394,000 after buying an additional 44,491 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in Starbucks by 161.7% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 147,683 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $13,497,000 after acquiring an additional 91,255 shares in the last quarter. PFG Advisors increased its position in shares of Starbucks by 43.0% during the first quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 3,212 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $294,000 after acquiring an additional 966 shares during the period. Finally, Tectonic Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1.6% during the first quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 9,998 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $914,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Starbucks Trading Up 1.5 %

NASDAQ SBUX opened at $97.55 on Friday. Starbucks Co. has a 12-month low of $71.55 and a 12-month high of $107.66. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $85.81. The stock has a market cap of $110.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.97.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80. The company had revenue of $9.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.60 billion. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 46.39% and a net margin of 10.40%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.06 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.50%. This is a positive change from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Rachel Ruggeri sold 3,290 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.16, for a total transaction of $299,916.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 62,502 shares in the company, valued at $5,697,682.32. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Starbucks news, CEO Rachel Ruggeri sold 3,290 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.16, for a total value of $299,916.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 62,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,697,682.32. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.03, for a total transaction of $305,597.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 75,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,057,327.62. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.98% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SBUX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. BTIG Research increased their price objective on Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Starbucks from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Wedbush reduced their price target on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $95.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.32.

Starbucks Profile

Starbucks Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a roaster, marketer, and retailer of coffee worldwide. The company operates through three segments: North America, International, and Channel Development. Its stores offer coffee and tea beverages, roasted whole beans and ground coffees, single serve products, and ready-to-drink beverages; and various food products, such as pastries, breakfast sandwiches, and lunch items.