Lantz Financial LLC Trims Stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Lantz Financial LLC lessened its position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 13.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,882 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 447 shares during the quarter. Lantz Financial LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $263,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Starbucks by 100.6% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,149,937 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,476,967,000 after acquiring an additional 7,598,146 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its stake in Starbucks by 55.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,779,859 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,928,339,000 after purchasing an additional 7,015,375 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Starbucks by 1,491.4% during the 4th 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 period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its position in Starbucks by 1,078.5% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,545,419 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $248,153,000 after purchasing an additional 2,329,431 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the 3rd quarter worth $126,574,000. 72.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Starbucks Trading Up 0.8 %

NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $98.81 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $95.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $92.25. Starbucks Co. has a 12 month low of $71.55 and a 12 month high of $103.32. The company has a market capitalization of $112.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.85, a PEG ratio of 2.91 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 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.80. The business had revenue of $9.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.60 billion. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 46.39% and a net margin of 10.40%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.06 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3.08 EPS for the current 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 given a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is presently 73.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related 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 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on SBUX. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. BTIG Research boosted their price target on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Starbucks in a report on Friday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Starbucks currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.92.

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.