Cullen Investment Group LTD. Sells 1,803 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Cullen Investment Group LTD. cut its stake in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 95,360 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 1,803 shares during the quarter. Starbucks comprises approximately 1.3% of Cullen Investment Group LTD.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Cullen Investment Group LTD.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $8,702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC increased its stake in Starbucks by 63.4% in the 2nd quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 14,164 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,102,000 after buying an additional 5,498 shares during the last quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new stake in Starbucks during the second quarter worth $41,000. Waycross Partners LLC boosted its position in Starbucks by 11.5% in the second quarter. Waycross Partners LLC now owns 176,614 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $13,749,000 after purchasing an additional 18,264 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Starbucks by 8.5% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,649,493 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $206,279,000 after purchasing an additional 207,156 shares during the period. Finally, One Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 21.6% during the 2nd quarter. One Capital Management LLC now owns 62,712 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $4,882,000 after purchasing an additional 11,133 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Performance

SBUX stock opened at $93.51 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $106.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.99. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $96.06 and its 200 day moving average is $91.24. Starbucks Co. has a 52 week low of $71.55 and a 52 week high of $103.32.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.80. The business had revenue of $9.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.60 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 10.40% and a negative return on equity of 46.39%. Starbucks’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.06 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3.11 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.61%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total value of $148,414.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 80,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,975,542.96. This trade represents a 1.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on SBUX. Citigroup boosted their target price on Starbucks from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Starbucks from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Starbucks from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research boosted their price target on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Starbucks currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.77.

Starbucks 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.