GSB Wealth Management LLC Trims Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

GSB Wealth Management LLC trimmed its position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,146 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 655 shares during the quarter. GSB Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $1,017,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Starbucks by 100.6% during the third 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 position in Starbucks by 55.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,779,859 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,928,339,000 after acquiring an additional 7,015,375 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in Starbucks by 1,491.4% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,808,571 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $256,282,000 after acquiring an additional 2,632,087 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its position in Starbucks by 1,078.5% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,545,419 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $248,153,000 after acquiring an additional 2,329,431 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new position in Starbucks during the third quarter valued at approximately $126,574,000. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,452 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.07, for a total transaction of $143,849.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 65,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,503,747.36. This represents a 2.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of Starbucks stock opened at $98.81 on Friday. Starbucks Co. has a 52 week low of $71.55 and a 52 week high of $103.32. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $95.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $92.25. The firm has a market cap of $112.03 billion, a PE ratio of 29.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.99.

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. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 46.39% and a net margin of 10.40%. The business had revenue of $9.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.06 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.61 dividend. 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 presently 73.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report 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 report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Starbucks from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday, November 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Starbucks currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.92.

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.