Van ECK Associates Corp Buys 4,088 Shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 155,272 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,088 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Sysco were worth $11,588,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Sysco in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. increased its position in Sysco by 1,240.0% in the 3rd quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 335 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the period. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in Sysco in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Canoe Financial LP acquired a new position in Sysco in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in Sysco in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 83.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Sysco

In related news, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 4,036 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.10, for a total transaction of $303,103.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 48,451 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,638,670.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.54% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Sysco Stock Up 1.3 %

Sysco stock opened at $76.35 on Wednesday. Sysco Co. has a 1-year low of $66.27 and a 1-year high of $82.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.20. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $76.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $74.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by ($0.04). Sysco had a net margin of 2.44% and a return on equity of 101.04%. The firm had revenue of $20.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.07 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Sysco Co. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 25th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th were given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. Sysco’s payout ratio is currently 52.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on SYY shares. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Sysco from $82.00 to $81.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Sysco from $91.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $85.77.

About Sysco

Sysco Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. It operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments.