Weiss Asset Management LP Acquires Shares of 123,968 Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 123,968 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,086,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the second quarter valued at $25,000. New Millennium Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Stephens Consulting LLC increased its stake in Starbucks by 498.2% during the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 335 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 279 shares during the last quarter. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Starbucks during the second quarter worth $31,000. 72.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SBUX has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. DZ Bank cut shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $85.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Piper Sandler upgraded Starbucks from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $85.00 to $103.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $85.00 to $118.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Citigroup increased their target price on Starbucks from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.77.

Insider Activity at Starbucks

In other news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total value of $148,414.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 80,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,975,542.96. This represents a 1.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Price Performance

Shares of Starbucks stock opened at $99.23 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $112.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.98, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.97. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $98.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $88.61. Starbucks Co. has a 12 month low of $71.55 and a 12 month high of $103.32.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80. The company had revenue of $9.07 billion for 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 revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.06 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 3.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This is a boost from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Starbucks’s payout ratio is currently 73.72%.

Starbucks Company 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.