J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Buys 901 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 14.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,159 shares of the coffee company’s stock after purchasing an additional 901 shares during the quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $687,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Willow Creek Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Starbucks by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Willow Creek Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,305 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $302,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. lifted its position in Starbucks by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. now owns 4,200 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $383,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Advisory Inc. lifted its position in Starbucks by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 2,260 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $206,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Herold Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Starbucks by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Herold Advisors Inc. now owns 2,422 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $221,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rodgers Brothers Inc. lifted its position in Starbucks by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Rodgers Brothers Inc. now owns 8,269 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $755,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Starbucks Stock Up 0.7 %

SBUX opened at $88.18 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $90.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.42. Starbucks Co. has a 52 week low of $84.29 and a 52 week high of $115.48. The company has a market capitalization of $99.84 billion, a PE ratio of 23.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.98.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The coffee company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.02). Starbucks had a net margin of 11.70% and a negative return on equity of 50.76%. The company had revenue of $9.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.60 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.75 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 4.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Starbucks’s payout ratio is 60.96%.

Insider Activity at Starbucks

In related news, insider Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.03, for a total value of $305,597.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 84,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,912,906.59. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 7,000 shares of company stock valued at $629,738. Insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on SBUX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Starbucks from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Friday. Guggenheim decreased their target price on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $106.68.

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.