Weatherly Asset Management L. P. Decreases Stock Position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Weatherly Asset Management L. P. lowered its stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 117,861 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 1,684 shares during the quarter. Starbucks comprises approximately 1.2% of Weatherly Asset Management L. P.’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Weatherly Asset Management L. P.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $11,316,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. raised its position in shares of Starbucks by 1,578.9% during the 3rd quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 319 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Starbucks by 153.8% during the 4th quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC now owns 330 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Price Performance

SBUX stock traded down $0.31 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $87.87. 5,662,674 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,423,798. The firm has a market cap of $99.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.53, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.98. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $90.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $94.42. Starbucks Co. has a 1-year low of $84.29 and a 1-year high of $115.48.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The coffee company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.02). Starbucks had a net margin of 11.70% and a negative return on equity of 50.76%. The firm had revenue of $9.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.75 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 4.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.96%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.39, for a total value of $277,517.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 81,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,933,582.61. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 7,000 shares of company stock valued at $629,738 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SBUX has been the topic of several analyst reports. BTIG Research cut their price target on shares of Starbucks from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of Starbucks from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $100.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Starbucks from $102.00 to $90.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Starbucks from $120.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $106.68.

About Starbucks

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.