Running Point Capital Advisors LLC Takes $220,000 Position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Running Point Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,255 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SBUX. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 1,466.3% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,350,932 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $260,870,000 after purchasing an additional 3,136,992 shares in the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the second quarter valued at $243,910,000. Capital World Investors purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the first quarter valued at approximately $257,721,000. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in Starbucks by 108.1% in the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,475,156 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $348,391,000 after buying an additional 2,324,847 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in Starbucks by 89.2% during the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 2,553,739 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $196,943,000 after purchasing an additional 1,204,153 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Starbucks Trading Down 0.1 %

NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $98.26 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $111.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.97. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $97.01 and its 200-day moving average is $86.70. Starbucks Co. has a 1-year low of $71.55 and a 1-year high of $104.68.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 46.39% and a net margin of 10.40%. The business had revenue of $9.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.06 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This is a positive change from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.72%.

Insider Transactions at Starbucks

In other news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,452 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.07, for a total value of $143,849.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 65,648 shares in the company, valued at $6,503,747.36. This trade represents a 2.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp bought 380 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 36,242 shares in the company, valued at $3,316,143. This trade represents a 1.06 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on SBUX. Redburn Atlantic reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $77.00 target price (down previously from $84.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Robert W. Baird raised Starbucks from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $81.00 to $110.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $85.00 to $118.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on Starbucks in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $115.00 target price for the company. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on Starbucks from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $102.81.

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.