Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys New Shares in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 323,858 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,598,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,244,812,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $284,283,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Starbucks by 1,491.4% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,808,571 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $256,282,000 after buying an additional 2,632,087 shares in the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new stake in Starbucks during the third quarter worth approximately $126,574,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Starbucks by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 111,106,209 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $10,138,442,000 after acquiring an additional 784,432 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Down 7.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ SBUX opened at $82.10 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $105.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $99.38. Starbucks Co. has a 52-week low of $71.55 and a 52-week high of $117.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 1.00.

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 business posted $0.90 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $0.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.97%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 78.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Argus raised Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Starbucks from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Starbucks from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.12.

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.