Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 45.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 3,282 shares of the coffee company’s stock after buying an additional 1,024 shares during the quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $315,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SBUX. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 4th quarter worth $1,240,652,000. Flossbach Von Storch AG grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 8,677.8% during the 4th quarter. Flossbach Von Storch AG now owns 2,715,405 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $260,706,000 after acquiring an additional 2,684,470 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 432.5% during the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,039,633 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $195,825,000 after acquiring an additional 1,656,591 shares during the period. J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 3rd quarter worth $147,125,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 44.8% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,146,033 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $493,350,000 after acquiring an additional 1,591,206 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on SBUX shares. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Starbucks from $90.00 to $80.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. BTIG Research cut their target price on Starbucks from $115.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Guggenheim cut their target price on Starbucks from $100.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Wedbush cut their target price on Starbucks from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $96.43.

Insider Activity at Starbucks

In related news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.39, for a total transaction of $277,517.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 81,199 shares in the company, valued at $6,933,582.61. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 3,750 shares of company stock worth $322,675 over the last quarter. 1.98% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Starbucks Stock Performance

NASDAQ:SBUX traded down $1.41 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $79.31. The stock had a trading volume of 5,284,115 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,170,417. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $84.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $92.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.97. Starbucks Co. has a one year low of $71.80 and a one year high of $107.66.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The coffee company reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.11). Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 49.91% and a net margin of 11.38%. The firm had revenue of $8.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.74 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.87%. Starbucks’s payout ratio is currently 62.81%.

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.