Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) Shares Sold by Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI

Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI reduced its stake in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 262,666 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,562 shares during the period. Sysco makes up approximately 1.6% of Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI owned 0.05% of Sysco worth $20,083,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. New England Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Sysco by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter. New England Asset Management Inc. now owns 131,360 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,254,000 after purchasing an additional 14,810 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Sysco by 29.0% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 78,333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,115,000 after acquiring an additional 17,587 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Sysco by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,685,547 shares of the company’s stock valued at $521,874,000 after acquiring an additional 672,940 shares during the period. WR Wealth Planners LLC boosted its holdings in Sysco by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 4,270 shares of the company’s stock worth $326,000 after buying an additional 386 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in Sysco by 7.7% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 124,341 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,706,000 after buying an additional 8,891 shares during the last quarter. 83.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Sysco

In other news, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 48,027 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.00, for a total transaction of $3,698,079.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 56,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,335,408. This represents a 46.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Sysco Stock Up 1.9 %

NYSE:SYY opened at $76.53 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.66. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $73.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.61. Sysco Co. has a 52 week low of $69.03 and a 52 week high of $82.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.11.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93. Sysco had a return on equity of 106.30% and a net margin of 2.40%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.89 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Sysco Co. will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Sysco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on SYY shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Sysco from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Sysco from $86.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Melius Research upgraded Sysco to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Sysco from $79.00 to $77.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.77.

About Sysco

Sysco Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. It operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments.