Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) Shares Sold by Qsemble Capital Management LP

Qsemble Capital Management LP lessened its position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 88.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,902 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 37,052 shares during the period. Qsemble Capital Management LP’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $478,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Starbucks in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. New Millennium Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Starbucks in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Stephens Consulting LLC grew its holdings in Starbucks by 498.2% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 335 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the period. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Starbucks in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Starbucks in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on SBUX. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Starbucks from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $80.00 to $120.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. BTIG Research boosted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on shares of Starbucks in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $115.00 target price for the company. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.77.

Starbucks Price Performance

SBUX opened at $101.51 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $115.09 billion, a PE ratio of 30.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.97. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $97.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $87.65. Starbucks Co. has a 12-month low of $71.55 and a 12-month high of $103.32.

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

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th 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 2.40%. This is a boost from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is 73.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 80,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,975,542.96. This represents a 1.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp purchased 380 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,316,143. The trade was a 1.06 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.98% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.