American Century Companies Inc. Decreases Position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

American Century Companies Inc. reduced its position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 6.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 698,185 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 47,192 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $63,709,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Starbucks by 100.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,149,937 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,476,967,000 after purchasing an additional 7,598,146 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 buying an additional 7,015,375 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the fourth quarter worth about $284,283,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Starbucks by 1,491.4% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,808,571 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $256,282,000 after acquiring an additional 2,632,087 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its holdings in Starbucks by 1,078.5% in 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 acquiring an additional 2,329,431 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Up 0.2 %

NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $95.88 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $108.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.99. Starbucks Co. has a 52 week low of $71.55 and a 52 week high of $117.46. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $105.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $99.48.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 earnings per share 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 business posted $0.90 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SBUX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Argus upgraded Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. UBS Group upped their target price on Starbucks from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given 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 stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.