Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) Shares Sold by Alpha Cubed Investments LLC

Alpha Cubed Investments LLC cut its stake in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 33.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 28,413 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 14,466 shares during the period. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $2,593,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bridges Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 21.0% during the second quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,312 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 747 shares in the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 42.1% in the 2nd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,099 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,798,000 after acquiring an additional 6,841 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Starbucks by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 134,130 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $10,442,000 after acquiring an additional 1,182 shares in the last quarter. Holderness Investments Co. lifted its stake in Starbucks by 8.1% during the second quarter. Holderness Investments Co. now owns 3,748 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $292,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Starbucks by 8,935.9% in the second quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 14,096 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,097,000 after purchasing an additional 13,940 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total value of $148,414.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 80,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,975,542.96. This trade represents a 1.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Starbucks Price Performance

SBUX opened at $95.13 on Tuesday. Starbucks Co. has a 12 month low of $71.55 and a 12 month high of $103.32. The business has a 50-day moving average of $95.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $91.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $107.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.99.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80. Starbucks had a net margin of 10.40% and a negative return on equity of 46.39%. The company had revenue of $9.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.06 EPS. Starbucks’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Starbucks’s payout ratio is currently 73.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SBUX. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Starbucks from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Citigroup upped their target price on Starbucks from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. BTIG Research lifted their price target on Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Starbucks from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Starbucks has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.92.

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.