Verity & Verity LLC Sells 28,279 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Verity & Verity LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 20.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 109,822 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 28,279 shares during the quarter. Verity & Verity LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $10,707,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SBUX. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in Starbucks by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,720,903 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $678,923,000 after acquiring an additional 221,718 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 108.1% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,475,156 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $348,391,000 after purchasing an additional 2,324,847 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in Starbucks by 0.3% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 3,362,100 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $327,771,000 after purchasing an additional 9,900 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in Starbucks by 1,466.3% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,350,932 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $260,870,000 after buying an additional 3,136,992 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,255,967 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $317,424,000 after buying an additional 122,886 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Trading Up 2.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ SBUX opened at $100.40 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $113.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.97. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $96.91 and its 200 day moving average is $86.44. Starbucks Co. has a 1-year low of $71.55 and a 1-year high of $105.47.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $9.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.06 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. This is an increase from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Starbucks’s payout ratio is currently 73.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday, August 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Starbucks from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Starbucks from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Starbucks from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $81.00 to $110.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Starbucks from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $85.00 to $103.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Three 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 given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Starbucks has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.81.

Insider Activity

In other Starbucks news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,452 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.07, for a total transaction of $143,849.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 65,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,503,747.36. This represents a 2.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp acquired 380 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 36,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,316,143. The trade was a 1.06 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Starbucks Company 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.