Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold” Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. TD Securities cut their price target on shares of Starbucks from $102.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Starbucks from $115.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Starbucks from $125.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Starbucks from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $103.00 to $85.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on Starbucks from $105.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $98.72.

Starbucks Price Performance

NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $80.30 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $90.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $96.88. Starbucks has a 1-year low of $71.55 and a 1-year high of $117.46. The firm has a market cap of $91.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.99.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The coffee company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $8.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.90 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 9.73% and a negative return on equity of 44.97%. Starbucks’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.68 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Starbucks will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $0.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.04%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is currently 88.41%.

Institutional Trading of Starbucks

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SBUX. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Starbucks by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC now owns 3,421 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $312,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Pioneer Trust Bank N A OR boosted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Pioneer Trust Bank N A OR now owns 11,312 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,032,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Wintrust Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Wintrust Investments LLC now owns 1,411 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Kuhn & Co Investment Counsel increased its stake in Starbucks by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Kuhn & Co Investment Counsel now owns 4,240 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $387,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Starbucks by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC now owns 1,014 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $93,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

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.