Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 4,541 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 6.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 60,806 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 4,541 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $5,549,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR acquired a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at about $3,181,000. Horizon Investments LLC raised its holdings in Starbucks by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 25,702 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $2,345,000 after buying an additional 702 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in Starbucks by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 63,096 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $5,859,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. American Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Starbucks by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. American Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 60,000 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $5,475,000 after acquiring an additional 20,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PDS Planning Inc increased its position in Starbucks by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 7,023 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $641,000 after acquiring an additional 372 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SBUX opened at $99.19 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $112.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.00, a PEG ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.99. Starbucks Co. has a fifty-two week low of $71.55 and a fifty-two week high of $117.46. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $105.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $99.30.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period last year, the firm earned $0.90 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SBUX. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays upped their price target on Starbucks from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Starbucks from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Wedbush raised their price target on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $106.12.

Starbucks Company 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.