Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Invests $137.90 Million in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new position in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 1,766,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $137,900,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 0.36% of Sysco as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sysco by 103.0% in the second quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 4,746,176 shares of the company’s stock worth $338,830,000 after buying an additional 2,408,226 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in Sysco in the 1st quarter worth $178,824,000. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Sysco by 49.8% in the 2nd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,012,607 shares of the company’s stock worth $429,240,000 after acquiring an additional 1,997,895 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in Sysco by 26.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,623,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $615,076,000 after acquiring an additional 1,782,180 shares during the period. Finally, Primecap Management Co. CA increased its holdings in shares of Sysco by 37.5% in the second quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 4,373,485 shares of the company’s stock valued at $312,223,000 after purchasing an additional 1,192,650 shares during the period. 83.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sysco Stock Up 0.9 %

Sysco stock opened at $75.79 on Friday. Sysco Co. has a 12 month low of $69.03 and a 12 month high of $82.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.23 billion, a PE ratio of 19.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $75.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $74.74.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by ($0.04). Sysco had a return on equity of 101.04% and a net margin of 2.44%. The company had revenue of $20.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.47 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.07 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Sysco Co. will post 4.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.69%. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sysco

In other news, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 4,036 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.10, for a total transaction of $303,103.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 48,451 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,638,670.10. This represents a 7.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total transaction of $216,427.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $966,831.65. This trade represents a 18.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Sysco from $91.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sysco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.77.

Sysco Company Profile

Sysco Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. It operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments.