Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) Trading Down 0.6%

Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) dropped 0.6% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $92.55 and last traded at $92.58. Approximately 1,347,188 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 11,968,173 shares. The stock had previously closed at $93.18.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on SBUX. Bank of America raised their target price on Starbucks from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $93.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $85.00 to $118.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Starbucks in a report on Thursday, June 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $100.00 price target for the company. Finally, Baird R W upgraded Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Starbucks presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $99.42.

Starbucks Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $103.71 billion, a PE ratio of 25.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.96. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $82.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $83.96.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The coffee company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93. The business had revenue of $9.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.25 billion. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 49.38% and a net margin of 11.16%. The company’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.00 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 3.56 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.81%.

Insider Activity at Starbucks

In other news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $260,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,264,320. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Rachel Ruggeri sold 3,290 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.16, for a total value of $299,916.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 62,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,697,682.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $260,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 78,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,264,320. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,790 shares of company stock valued at $865,514 over the last 90 days. 1.98% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Starbucks

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cox Capital Mgt LLC grew its stake in Starbucks by 41.9% during the 1st quarter. Cox Capital Mgt LLC now owns 45,322 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $4,142,000 after buying an additional 13,372 shares during the last quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,781,000. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 4th quarter valued at $31,246,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Starbucks by 18.7% in the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,116 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,016,000 after purchasing an additional 1,751 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bell & Brown Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Starbucks during the 4th quarter worth $4,048,000. 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.