Sysco (NYSE:SYY) Trading 3.1% Higher – Should You Buy?

Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)’s stock price was up 3.1% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $72.70 and last traded at $72.58. Approximately 1,782,544 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 43% from the average daily volume of 3,131,805 shares. The stock had previously closed at $70.39.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on SYY. Melius assumed coverage on Sysco in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. They set a “hold” rating and a $85.00 target price for the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Sysco from $93.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Sysco in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Sysco from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Sysco from $86.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.77.

Sysco Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $35.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.67, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a fifty day moving average of $72.98 and a 200 day moving average of $75.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.66, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.68.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.93. Sysco had a net margin of 2.40% and a return on equity of 106.30%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Sysco Co. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.81%. Sysco’s payout ratio is 52.44%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sysco news, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 48,027 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.00, for a total transaction of $3,698,079.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 56,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,335,408. This represents a 46.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Sysco in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Sysco in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Sherman Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Sysco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Sysco in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Sysco by 53.0% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 430 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.41% of the company’s stock.

About Sysco

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.