Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) Holdings Lifted by VELA Investment Management LLC

VELA Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 61,824 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 827 shares during the quarter. Sysco makes up about 1.7% of VELA Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest position. VELA Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Sysco were worth $4,521,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sysco by 263.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 34,007 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,246,000 after buying an additional 24,650 shares in the last quarter. Professional Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sysco during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $20,057,000. Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co purchased a new stake in shares of Sysco during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $4,623,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sysco by 40.1% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 82,239 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,014,000 after buying an additional 23,558 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Sysco by 161.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC now owns 18,238 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,205,000 after acquiring an additional 11,269 shares during the period. 83.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Sysco

In related news, CAO Neil Russell sold 1,722 shares of Sysco stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $137,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,082 shares in the company, valued at $1,926,560. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Sysco Stock Performance

SYY stock traded up $0.40 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $75.65. 2,106,258 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,967,091. Sysco Co. has a 1-year low of $62.24 and a 1-year high of $82.89. The firm has a market cap of $37.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.58, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.15. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $79.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $74.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.00, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.01. Sysco had a net margin of 2.69% and a return on equity of 105.22%. The business had revenue of $19.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.32 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.80 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Sysco Co. will post 4.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.64%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SYY has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Sysco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Stephens increased their price target on shares of Sysco from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Sysco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Sysco has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.38.

Sysco Company Profile

Sysco Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. It operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments.