Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-nine brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have given a hold recommendation, seventeen have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $103.77.

SBUX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Starbucks from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $92.00 to $115.00 in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Wedbush reduced their price objective on Starbucks from $98.00 to $95.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday, August 26th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, DZ Bank downgraded Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $85.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, August 21st.

Insider Buying and Selling at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total transaction of $148,414.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 80,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,975,542.96. The trade was a 1.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.98% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 21.9% in the second quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 17,002 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,324,000 after purchasing an additional 3,050 shares in the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the second quarter worth $38,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 73.3% in the second quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,163 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $168,000 after acquiring an additional 915 shares in the last quarter. Country Trust Bank boosted its holdings in Starbucks by 49.5% in the second quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 936 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the period. Finally, Thrive Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Starbucks during the 2nd quarter worth $282,000. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Starbucks Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $100.11 on Friday. Starbucks has a 52-week low of $71.55 and a 52-week high of $103.32. The stock has a market cap of $113.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.24, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.97. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $98.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $88.61.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.80. Starbucks had a net margin of 10.40% and a negative return on equity of 46.39%. The company had revenue of $9.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.06 EPS. Starbucks’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Starbucks will post 3.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This is a positive change from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is presently 73.72%.

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.