Kesler Norman & Wride LLC Buys 724 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Kesler Norman & Wride LLC lifted its stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 7.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,133 shares of the coffee company’s stock after buying an additional 724 shares during the period. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $925,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SBUX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Starbucks from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Argus raised Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Wedbush raised their target price on Starbucks from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Starbucks has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $106.12.

Starbucks Stock Up 0.1 %

SBUX opened at $98.23 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $111.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.99. Starbucks Co. has a 12 month low of $71.55 and a 12 month high of $117.46. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $105.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $99.54.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.01. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 44.97% and a net margin of 9.73%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.90 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.