Beech Hill Advisors Inc. Has $2.64 Million Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Beech Hill Advisors Inc. cut its holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 36.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,598 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 15,512 shares during the quarter. Beech Hill Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $2,635,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of SBUX. Advisory Alpha LLC lifted its holdings in Starbucks by 4.5% during the first quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 2,152 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP increased its position in shares of Starbucks by 4.2% during the first quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 2,379 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. FLC Capital Advisors increased its position in shares of Starbucks by 1.2% during the first quarter. FLC Capital Advisors now owns 8,310 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $865,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV increased its position in shares of Starbucks by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV now owns 14,194 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,408,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Piscataqua Savings Bank increased its position in shares of Starbucks by 11.3% during the first quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 985 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 70.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Starbucks from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 19th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $104.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Citigroup reduced their target price on Starbucks from $117.00 to $112.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 24th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Wednesday, August 2nd. Finally, Wedbush reduced their target price on Starbucks from $112.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 2nd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Starbucks presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $115.24.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 679 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.60, for a total value of $68,307.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 54,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,508,956.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Starbucks Stock Down 1.0 %

NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $96.23 on Friday. Starbucks Co. has a 52 week low of $82.43 and a 52 week high of $115.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $110.22 billion, a PE ratio of 29.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.93. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $99.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.43.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 1st. The coffee company reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.05. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 44.46% and a net margin of 10.81%. The company had revenue of $9.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.84 EPS. Starbucks’s revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Starbucks

Starbucks Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a roaster, marketer, and retailer of specialty 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.