Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) Shares Sold by Kercheville Advisors LLC

Kercheville Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 44,075 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 350 shares during the period. Starbucks comprises about 1.6% of Kercheville Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position. Kercheville Advisors LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $4,022,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Czech National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 6.9% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 230,845 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $22,505,000 after buying an additional 14,999 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Starbucks by 34.2% in the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,979 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $193,000 after acquiring an additional 504 shares during the last quarter. Axiom Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Axiom Advisory LLC now owns 7,573 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $738,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Atomi Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 27.7% during the third quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 13,120 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,279,000 after purchasing an additional 2,843 shares during the last quarter. Finally, O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. grew its position in shares of Starbucks by 51.5% in the third quarter. O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. now owns 5,235 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $510,000 after purchasing an additional 1,780 shares during the period. 72.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on SBUX shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Starbucks from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. BTIG Research upped their price target on Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday, November 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $105.33.

Starbucks Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $112.25 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $127.50 billion, a PE ratio of 36.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 1.00. Starbucks Co. has a 12-month low of $71.55 and a 12-month high of $112.42. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $94.07.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.01. Starbucks had a net margin of 9.73% and a negative return on equity of 44.97%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.90 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 78.71%.

Insider Activity at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,452 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.07, for a total value of $143,849.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 65,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,503,747.36. This represents a 2.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

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.