Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 6.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,599,958 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 701,024 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.85% of Starbucks worth $935,900,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SBUX. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1,466.3% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,350,932 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $260,870,000 after acquiring an additional 3,136,992 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $243,910,000. Capital World Investors bought a new stake in Starbucks during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $257,721,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 108.1% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,475,156 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $348,391,000 after acquiring an additional 2,324,847 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in shares of Starbucks by 89.2% in the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 2,553,739 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $196,943,000 after acquiring an additional 1,204,153 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $98.94 on Thursday. Starbucks Co. has a 1 year low of $71.55 and a 1 year high of $104.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $112.12 billion, a PE ratio of 29.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.97. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $97.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $86.70.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80. The business had revenue of $9.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.06 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.47%. This is a positive change from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Starbucks’s payout ratio is 73.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp acquired 380 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $91.50 per share, for a total transaction of $34,770.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 36,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,316,143. The trade was a 1.06 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,452 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.07, for a total value of $143,849.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 65,648 shares in the company, valued at $6,503,747.36. This represents a 2.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.98% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Barclays lowered their price target on Starbucks from $110.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $80.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.81.

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.