Cozad Asset Management Inc. Acquires Shares of 2,474 Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Cozad Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 2,474 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $241,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Quent Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 9.6% in the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 4,389 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $401,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 306.2% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 59,019 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $5,394,000 after buying an additional 44,491 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 161.7% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 147,683 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $13,497,000 after buying an additional 91,255 shares during the last quarter. PFG Advisors raised its position in shares of Starbucks by 43.0% during the 1st quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 3,212 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $294,000 after buying an additional 966 shares during the period. Finally, Tectonic Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Starbucks by 1.6% in the first quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 9,998 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $914,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Starbucks from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Starbucks from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $92.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $80.00 to $76.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Starbucks from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $80.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.32.

Insider Transactions at Starbucks

In other news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp purchased 380 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,242 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,316,143. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Starbucks news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp bought 380 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $91.50 per share, for a total transaction of $34,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 36,242 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,316,143. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.03, for a total transaction of $305,597.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 75,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,057,327.62. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SBUX opened at $97.55 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $96.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $110.54 billion, a PE ratio of 29.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.97. Starbucks Co. has a fifty-two week low of $71.55 and a fifty-two week high of $107.66.

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

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This is a positive change 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 2.50%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.88%.

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.