Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC Reduces Position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC trimmed its holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 1.6% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 623,584 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 9,898 shares during the period. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $60,793,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Starbucks

In other news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,452 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.07, for a total transaction of $143,849.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 65,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,503,747.36. This trade represents a 2.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp purchased 380 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 36,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,316,143. This represents a 1.06 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.98% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of Starbucks stock opened at $102.46 on Monday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $97.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $88.10. Starbucks Co. has a one year low of $71.55 and a one year high of $103.32. The company has a market cap of $116.17 billion, a PE ratio of 30.95, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.97.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.80. Starbucks had a net margin of 10.40% and a negative return on equity of 46.39%. The company had revenue of $9.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.06 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 3.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This is a positive change from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is 73.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on SBUX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Starbucks from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Redburn Atlantic reissued a “sell” rating and set a $77.00 target price (down previously from $84.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Starbucks from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on Starbucks from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.77.

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.