Pathway Financial Advisers LLC Boosts Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 3.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,288 shares of the coffee company’s stock after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $756,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SBUX. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 100.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,149,937 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,476,967,000 after acquiring an additional 7,598,146 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Starbucks by 55.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,779,859 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,928,339,000 after purchasing an additional 7,015,375 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Starbucks by 1,491.4% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,808,571 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $256,282,000 after purchasing an additional 2,632,087 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its holdings in Starbucks by 1,078.5% in the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,545,419 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $248,153,000 after purchasing an additional 2,329,431 shares during the period. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the third quarter valued at approximately $126,574,000. 72.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Starbucks Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of Starbucks stock opened at $113.04 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $97.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $95.49. The firm has a market cap of $128.40 billion, a PE ratio of 36.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.00. Starbucks Co. has a 52 week low of $71.55 and a 52 week high of $113.19.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 9.73% and a negative return on equity of 44.97%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.90 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 3 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is presently 78.71%.

Insider Activity at Starbucks

In related news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,452 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 65,648 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,503,747.36. The trade was a 2.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on SBUX shares. Redburn Atlantic reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $77.00 price target (down previously from $84.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. BTIG Research raised their price target on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Starbucks from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $105.33.

Starbucks 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.