Meridian Wealth Management LLC Acquires New Stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Meridian Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 11,234 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,095,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dakota Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Starbucks by 0.5% in the third quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 55,793 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $5,439,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Weil Company Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 31.2% in the 3rd quarter. Weil Company Inc. now owns 34,580 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $3,371,000 after buying an additional 8,222 shares during the period. Maia Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Starbucks by 69.1% during the third quarter. Maia Wealth LLC now owns 18,582 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,805,000 after buying an additional 7,596 shares in the last quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Starbucks by 48.5% during the third quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC now owns 30,422 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $2,966,000 after buying an additional 9,936 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 0.3% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 3,362,100 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $327,771,000 after buying an additional 9,900 shares during the period. 72.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Starbucks news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total transaction of $148,414.14. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 80,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,975,542.96. The trade was a 1.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp bought 380 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $91.50 per share, for a total transaction of $34,770.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 36,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,316,143. The trade was a 1.06 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.98% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on SBUX shares. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday, August 26th. Barclays dropped their target price on Starbucks from $110.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Starbucks from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $92.00 to $115.00 in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Starbucks from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, DZ Bank downgraded Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $85.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.81.

Starbucks Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of SBUX opened at $102.50 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $116.21 billion, a PE ratio of 30.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.97. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $97.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $87.10. Starbucks Co. has a twelve month low of $71.55 and a twelve month high of $103.60.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 46.39% and a net margin of 10.40%. The firm had revenue of $9.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.06 earnings per share. Starbucks’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.61 dividend. This is a boost from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.72%.

About Starbucks

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.