Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc. Decreases Holdings in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc. decreased its stake in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,078 shares of the company’s stock after selling 335 shares during the quarter. Sysco makes up 1.1% of Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Sysco were worth $1,765,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Sysco in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sysco in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Sherman Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sysco in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Sysco by 53.0% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 430 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Sysco by 107.4% during the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 620 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.41% of the company’s stock.

Sysco Stock Up 3.3 %

NYSE:SYY opened at $72.74 on Thursday. Sysco Co. has a 52 week low of $69.03 and a 52 week high of $82.33. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $72.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.66.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.93. Sysco had a return on equity of 106.30% and a net margin of 2.40%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.89 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Sysco Co. will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.80%. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sysco

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on SYY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Sysco from $86.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Sysco from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Sysco in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Sysco from $79.00 to $77.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Barclays cut 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.77.

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.