Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) Shares Sold by Verdence Capital Advisors LLC

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,725 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 418 shares during the quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $522,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 45,974,407 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $4,482,045,000 after acquiring an additional 437,218 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,277,756 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $2,358,464,000 after acquiring an additional 333,004 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 7,015,375 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 100.6% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 11,916,777 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,087,406,000 after acquiring an additional 154,093 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Trading Down 5.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ SBUX opened at $105.47 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $103.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $98.94. The company has a market cap of $119.80 billion, a PE ratio of 34.02, a P/E/G ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.99. Starbucks Co. has a 12-month low of $71.55 and a 12-month high of $117.46.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.90 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on SBUX. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Friday, January 24th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Monday, November 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Redburn Atlantic reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $77.00 price objective (down from $84.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Starbucks from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $105.75.

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.