Paul R. Ried Financial Group LLC Invests $1.98 Million in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Paul R. Ried Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 21,661 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,977,000. Starbucks accounts for 1.4% of Paul R. Ried Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Trust Point Inc. lifted its holdings in Starbucks by 14.4% during the fourth quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 11,185 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,021,000 after purchasing an additional 1,406 shares in the last quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT lifted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 26.1% in the fourth quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT now owns 9,391 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $857,000 after buying an additional 1,946 shares in the last quarter. Optas LLC lifted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Optas LLC now owns 16,711 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,525,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, JB Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. JB Capital LLC now owns 37,466 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $3,419,000 after buying an additional 1,306 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Starbucks

In other news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total value of $148,414.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 80,124 shares in the company, valued at $7,975,542.96. This trade represents a 1.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Price Performance

SBUX stock opened at $108.16 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $96.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $93.61. Starbucks Co. has a fifty-two week low of $71.55 and a fifty-two week high of $110.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.89, a P/E/G ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 1.00.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.01. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 44.97% and a net margin of 9.73%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.90 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. Starbucks’s payout ratio is 78.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on SBUX shares. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. BTIG Research raised their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $105.33.

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.