Red Spruce Capital LLC Acquires Shares of 15,221 Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Red Spruce Capital LLC bought a new position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 15,221 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,493,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Starbucks during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Collier Financial bought a new stake in Starbucks during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on SBUX shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Starbucks from $125.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a report on Thursday. Barclays cut their target price on Starbucks from $106.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Guggenheim lowered their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $83.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Starbucks from $105.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $97.92.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SBUX opened at $84.05 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $95.51 billion, a PE ratio of 27.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.99. Starbucks Co. has a 52 week low of $71.55 and a 52 week high of $117.46. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $85.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $95.71.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The coffee company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.51 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $8.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.90 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 9.73% and a negative return on equity of 44.97%. Starbucks’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.68 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.90%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is presently 88.41%.

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.