Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. Purchases Shares of 13,205 Starbucks Corporation $SBUX

Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. acquired a new stake in Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 13,205 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,112,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Starbucks by 86.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 176,722 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $16,126,000 after purchasing an additional 81,952 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its holdings in Starbucks by 47.0% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 3,642 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $334,000 after buying an additional 1,164 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the second quarter valued at approximately $5,986,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Starbucks by 1,840.5% during the second quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 65,045 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $5,960,000 after buying an additional 61,693 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Insigneo Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 5.9% in the second quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,927 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,185,000 after buying an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Starbucks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MarketWatch and other outlets note SBUX outperformed peers on a strong trading day, reflecting favorable market sentiment and momentum into the trading session. Starbucks Corp. stock outperforms competitors on strong trading day
• Positive Sentiment: DBS Bank upgraded SBUX, which likely contributed to buying interest; analyst upgrades often lift investor confidence and share demand. Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) Upgraded at Dbs Bank
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlighting a renewed focus on hospitality — regaining the “third place” experience — supports the narrative that management (CEO Brian Niccol) is shifting away from a manufacturing mindset toward customer experience, which investors view as a long-term revenue driver. Starbucks CEO admits the chain ‘ran like a manufacturing facility’
• Neutral Sentiment: Q4 earnings were mixed: revenue topped estimates while EPS missed and FY26 EPS was guided to $2.15–$2.40. The beat on sales supports growth hopes, but the EPS miss and still-elevated valuation (high P/E) temper enthusiasm. Q4 Earnings Highlights: Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) Vs The Rest Of The Traditional Fast Food Stocks
• Negative Sentiment: Labor risk persists: a proxy battle and pressure from labor-friendly investors (Workers United) could lead to renewed bargaining and potential operational or cost impacts, creating an overhang for some investors. Starbucks challenged by labor-friendly activist investors

Insider Transactions at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, EVP Sara Kelly sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.12, for a total transaction of $242,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 59,609 shares in the company, valued at $5,789,226.08. This represents a 4.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Brady Brewer sold 1,641 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.12, for a total value of $159,373.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 86,605 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,411,077.60. The trade was a 1.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,729 shares of company stock valued at $460,974. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on SBUX. New Street Research set a $90.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $113.00 price target on shares of Starbucks in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $103.00 price objective (up from $100.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Friday, January 30th. William Blair upgraded Starbucks from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.81.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of SBUX opened at $93.83 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $106.90 billion, a PE ratio of 77.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.93. The company’s fifty day moving average is $96.09 and its 200 day moving average is $88.62. Starbucks Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $75.50 and a fifty-two week high of $104.82.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.59 by ($0.03). Starbucks had a net margin of 3.63% and a negative return on equity of 28.66%. The business had revenue of $9.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.69 EPS. Starbucks’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.150-2.400 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Profile

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.