D.A. Davidson & CO. Decreases Stock Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

D.A. Davidson & CO. lessened its holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 1.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 461,380 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 4,955 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $45,704,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich grew its position in Starbucks by 80,389.3% in the second quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 125,195,416 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $12,401,858,000 after acquiring an additional 125,039,873 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at $1,222,931,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Starbucks by 115,334.1% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,493,639 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $842,569,000 after buying an additional 8,486,281 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in Starbucks by 46.3% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 26,718,368 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $2,650,462,000 after buying an additional 8,451,599 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the first quarter valued at about $190,270,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.13% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of SBUX traded down $0.25 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $104.05. 1,629,969 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,371,292. Starbucks Co. has a 1-year low of $89.21 and a 1-year high of $115.48. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $96.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $98.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $119.18 billion, a PE ratio of 29.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.98.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 2nd. The coffee company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.09. Starbucks had a net margin of 11.47% and a negative return on equity of 48.79%. The firm had revenue of $9.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.81 EPS. Starbucks’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 4.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 24th. Investors of record on Friday, November 10th will be given a $0.57 dividend. This is a boost from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 9th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on SBUX. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Monday, November 6th. Wedbush increased their target price on Starbucks from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 11th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of Starbucks from $123.00 to $116.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 23rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $114.52.

Insider Buying and Selling at Starbucks

In other news, insider Michael Aaron Conway sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.77, for a total value of $681,005.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 72,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,629,560.94. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Michael Aaron Conway sold 6,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.77, for a total value of $681,005.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 72,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,629,560.94. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 504 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.66, for a total transaction of $53,252.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 75,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,927,352.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.98% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.