Fiduciary Trust Co Trims Stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Fiduciary Trust Co reduced its position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 49,001 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 1,097 shares during the period. Fiduciary Trust Co’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $4,777,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SBUX. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 55.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,779,859 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,928,339,000 after purchasing an additional 7,015,375 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 1,466.3% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,350,932 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $260,870,000 after purchasing an additional 3,136,992 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the 2nd quarter valued at about $243,910,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 1,078.5% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,545,419 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $248,153,000 after purchasing an additional 2,329,431 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in Starbucks by 108.1% in the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,475,156 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $348,391,000 after acquiring an additional 2,324,847 shares during the period. 72.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the 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 directly owns 80,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,975,542.96. This trade represents a 1.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp bought 380 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $91.50 per share, for a total transaction of $34,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,242 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,316,143. This trade represents a 1.06 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on SBUX. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on Starbucks in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut Starbucks from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $80.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Starbucks from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Starbucks from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $92.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Starbucks has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.77.

Starbucks Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of Starbucks stock opened at $101.51 on Friday. Starbucks Co. has a fifty-two week low of $71.55 and a fifty-two week high of $103.32. The firm has a market cap of $115.09 billion, a PE ratio of 30.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.97. The business’s fifty day moving average is $97.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $87.74.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 46.39% and a net margin of 10.40%. The company had revenue of $9.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.06 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 3.12 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This is a positive change from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.72%.

About Starbucks

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.