Financial Advisory Partners LLC Reduces Position in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Financial Advisory Partners LLC trimmed its stake in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,532 shares of the company’s stock after selling 817 shares during the quarter. Financial Advisory Partners LLC’s holdings in Sysco were worth $3,481,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Econ Financial Services Corp acquired a new stake in Sysco in the 4th quarter worth about $1,179,000. Choreo LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sysco by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 20,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,576,000 after acquiring an additional 570 shares during the period. Money Concepts Capital Corp boosted its position in shares of Sysco by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 36,455 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,787,000 after acquiring an additional 992 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Sysco by 19.8% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 65,994 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,070,000 after purchasing an additional 10,910 shares during the period. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new position in Sysco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $50,000. 83.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on SYY shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. StockNews.com raised Sysco from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Sysco in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Sysco from $79.00 to $77.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Melius Research upgraded shares of Sysco to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sysco currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $84.38.

Sysco Stock Performance

Shares of SYY opened at $71.38 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.66. Sysco Co. has a 12 month low of $69.03 and a 12 month high of $82.33. The company’s fifty day moving average is $76.11 and its 200-day moving average is $75.99. The firm has a market cap of $34.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.18.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.93. Sysco had a return on equity of 106.30% and a net margin of 2.40%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Sysco Co. will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 3rd. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.44%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 21,844 shares of Sysco stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $1,747,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 60,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,846,480. This trade represents a 26.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total value of $216,427.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,955 shares in the company, valued at $966,831.65. The trade was a 18.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 79,270 shares of company stock worth $6,181,946 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Sysco Profile

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.