River Road Asset Management LLC Sells 857,642 Shares of Starbucks Corporation $SBUX

River Road Asset Management LLC decreased its stake in shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 84.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 159,971 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 857,642 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $13,471,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rachor Investment Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Starbucks in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Phillip James Consulting Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new position in Starbucks in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC bought a new position in Starbucks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, CEO Brady Brewer sold 2,229 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.81, for a total value of $233,621.49. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 81,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,548,198.79. This represents a 2.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Sara Kelly sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $210,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 57,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,053,565. The trade was a 3.35% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 8,687 shares of company stock worth $863,707 in the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Starbucks Price Performance

Shares of Starbucks stock opened at $100.65 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $101.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $95.17. The stock has a market cap of $114.71 billion, a PE ratio of 76.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.98. Starbucks Corporation has a 12 month low of $77.99 and a 12 month high of $108.88.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The coffee company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $9.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.17 billion. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 29.24% and a net margin of 3.89%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.41 earnings per share. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.250-2.450 EPS. Analysts expect that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 187.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Starbucks in a research report on Monday, March 9th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Starbucks from a “neutral” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. BTIG Research cut Starbucks from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Tigress Financial initiated coverage on Starbucks in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $122.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on Starbucks in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $107.93.

Starbucks News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Starbucks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continue to cite Starbucks as a “wide moat” consumer stock with stable-return potential in the second half of 2026, which supports the investment case for SBUX. Buy 5 Non-Tech Wide Moat Stocks for a Stable Portfolio in 2H 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Starbucks is being spotlighted for growth initiatives, including plans to double its store count outside North America and to speed up expansion in India, signaling a longer-term unit-growth runway. Starbucks Could Double Its International Store Count. Is It Time to Invest $1,000?
• Positive Sentiment: Retail-sales coverage also listed SBUX among stocks benefiting from resilient consumer demand and improving earnings estimates, reinforcing the view that the business may be holding up well. 5 Stocks to Grab as Retail Sales Continue to Surge on Robust Demand
• Neutral Sentiment: Juneteenth-related coverage about whether Starbucks stores are open or closed is likely to affect traffic only modestly and is more of a customer-information item than a stock-moving catalyst. Is Starbucks open or closed on Juneteenth?
• Neutral Sentiment: Reuters-linked reports that Starbucks Korea will close all stores early for staff training point to reputational management efforts, but the direct financial impact appears limited unless backlash spreads. Starbucks Korea Faces Sales Hit after Backlash, Plans Nationwide Staff Training, Says Reuters
• Negative Sentiment: Some coverage warned that Starbucks is among restaurant stocks investors should “think twice about,” reflecting broader caution around restaurant demand and consumer spending volatility. 3 Restaurant Stocks We Think Twice About
• Negative Sentiment: Recent market write-ups noted SBUX underperformed and saw a sharper drop than the broader market in prior trading, suggesting some near-term pressure remains on the stock. Starbucks (SBUX) Sees a More Significant Dip Than Broader Market: Some Facts to Know

About Starbucks

Starbucks Corporation is a global coffeehouse chain and roaster that operates, licenses and franchises coffee shops and related retail businesses. Founded in Seattle, Washington in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl and Gordon Bowker, the company grew from a single store focused on whole-bean coffee and equipment into a broad consumer-facing brand. Howard Schultz, who joined the company later and served in senior leadership roles, is widely credited with transforming Starbucks into a mass-market specialty coffee retailer and expanding its footprint internationally.

Starbucks’ core activities center on the retail sale of hot and cold specialty beverages, whole-bean and packaged coffees, teas and ready-to-drink products, along with complementary food items and merchandise such as mugs and brewing equipment.