Virtue Capital Management LLC Has $674,000 Position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Virtue Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 1.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,909 shares of the coffee company’s stock after buying an additional 115 shares during the period. Virtue Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $674,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SBUX. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Starbucks by 100.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,149,937 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,476,967,000 after acquiring an additional 7,598,146 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 55.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,779,859 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,928,339,000 after purchasing an additional 7,015,375 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 1,466.3% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,350,932 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $260,870,000 after purchasing an additional 3,136,992 shares in the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Starbucks during the second quarter worth about $243,910,000. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its position in Starbucks by 1,078.5% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,545,419 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $248,153,000 after purchasing an additional 2,329,431 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on SBUX. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $85.00 to $118.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Starbucks from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $80.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. DZ Bank downgraded shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $85.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.77.

Starbucks Trading Up 0.3 %

SBUX stock opened at $98.42 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $98.14 and a 200-day moving average of $89.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $111.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.97. Starbucks Co. has a 12 month low of $71.55 and a 12 month high of $103.32.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.80. The firm had revenue of $9.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.60 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 10.40% and a negative return on equity of 46.39%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.06 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 3.11 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.48%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total value of $148,414.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 80,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,975,542.96. The trade was a 1.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

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.