AIA Group Ltd Purchases 6,303 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

AIA Group Ltd grew its position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 90,717 shares of the coffee company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,303 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $8,278,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Starbucks by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 111,106,209 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $10,138,442,000 after purchasing an additional 784,432 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 45,974,407 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $4,482,045,000 after acquiring an additional 437,218 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Starbucks by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,277,756 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $2,358,464,000 after acquiring an additional 333,004 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Starbucks by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,868,817 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,448,030,000 after acquiring an additional 718,880 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,244,812,000. 72.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Starbucks Trading Down 1.1 %

Starbucks stock opened at $97.73 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $111.01 billion, a PE ratio of 31.53, a P/E/G ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.99. Starbucks Co. has a 12 month low of $71.55 and a 12 month high of $117.46. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $105.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $99.55.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.01. Starbucks had a net margin of 9.73% and a negative return on equity of 44.97%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.90 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on SBUX shares. Argus raised Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Starbucks from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Starbucks presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.12.

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.