Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. Acquires 5,377 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 45.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,123 shares of the coffee company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,377 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $1,333,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SBUX. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Vima LLC acquired a new stake in Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Fairman Group LLC acquired a new stake in Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Cypress Capital Management LLC WY lifted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 133.1% during the fourth quarter. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY now owns 324 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on SBUX shares. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $85.00 to $118.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $105.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Starbucks from $93.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $110.00 in a report on Wednesday. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Starbucks presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $98.79.

Starbucks Price Performance

NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $93.90 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $106.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.87, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.94. The company’s 50-day moving average is $77.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $83.91. Starbucks Co. has a 1-year low of $71.55 and a 1-year high of $107.66.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The coffee company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.93. Starbucks had a net margin of 11.16% and a negative return on equity of 49.38%. The firm had revenue of $9.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.00 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. Starbucks’s payout ratio is currently 62.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 3,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $300,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 65,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,234,480. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $260,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 78,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,264,320. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 3,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $300,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 65,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,234,480. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 7,250 shares of company stock valued at $579,375 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

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.