Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) Shares Sold by Cutler Investment Counsel LLC

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC reduced its holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,371 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 399 shares during the quarter. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $946,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SBUX. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 100.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,149,937 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,476,967,000 after acquiring an additional 7,598,146 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Starbucks by 55.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,779,859 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,928,339,000 after purchasing an additional 7,015,375 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased 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 worth $256,282,000 after purchasing an additional 2,632,087 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its stake in Starbucks by 1,078.5% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,545,419 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $248,153,000 after purchasing an additional 2,329,431 shares during the period. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 3rd quarter valued at $126,574,000. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total transaction of $148,414.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 80,124 shares in the company, valued at $7,975,542.96. The trade was a 1.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SBUX. Bank of America cut their target price on Starbucks from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Redburn Atlantic reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $77.00 price objective (down from $84.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Starbucks from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $105.33.

Starbucks Stock Performance

NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $112.55 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $98.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $96.01. Starbucks Co. has a one year low of $71.55 and a one year high of $113.47. The company has a market capitalization of $127.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.00.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 78.71%.

Starbucks Company 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.