S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC Reduces Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC lowered its position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 8.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 22,736 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 2,037 shares during the period. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $2,075,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in Starbucks during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. DT Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 39.4% in the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 428 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the 3rd quarter worth $49,000. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 3rd quarter worth $50,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the third quarter valued at about $71,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on SBUX. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays decreased their price target on Starbucks from $110.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Starbucks from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price target on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Starbucks presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.77.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total transaction of $148,414.14. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 80,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,975,542.96. This trade represents a 1.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.98% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of Starbucks stock opened at $93.07 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $95.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $91.34. Starbucks Co. has a one year low of $71.55 and a one year high of $103.32. The company has a market cap of $105.52 billion, a PE ratio of 28.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.99.

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

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.62%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is presently 73.72%.

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.