Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. Has $2.66 Million Stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. raised its stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 29,179 shares of the coffee company’s stock after buying an additional 269 shares during the quarter. Starbucks comprises 0.8% of Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $2,663,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in Starbucks during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. DT Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Starbucks by 39.4% in the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 428 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $49,000. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $50,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the third quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,452 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.07, for a total transaction of $143,849.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 65,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,503,747.36. This trade represents a 2.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SBUX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Starbucks from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. BTIG Research raised their target price on Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Starbucks from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.92.

Starbucks Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SBUX opened at $98.81 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $112.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.85, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.99. Starbucks Co. has a one year low of $71.55 and a one year high of $103.32. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $95.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $92.25.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80. Starbucks had a net margin of 10.40% and a negative return on equity of 46.39%. The company had revenue of $9.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.06 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.72%.

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.