Legal & General Group Plc Lowers Stock Position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Legal & General Group Plc decreased its holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 21.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,753,247 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 1,826,335 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.59% of Starbucks worth $616,234,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Graney & King LLC purchased a new stake in Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in Starbucks during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 price target (down from $114.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday. Baird R W cut shares of Starbucks from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Starbucks from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $105.12.

Starbucks Price Performance

Starbucks stock opened at $80.00 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $104.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.29. Starbucks Co. has a 12-month low of $71.55 and a 12-month high of $117.46.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates 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 last year, the firm posted $0.90 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. Starbucks’s payout ratio is currently 78.71%.

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.