Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC Reduces Position in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC lowered its stake in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 6.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,948 shares of the company’s stock after selling 265 shares during the period. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC’s holdings in Sysco were worth $308,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SYY. West Tower Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sysco during the third quarter worth about $273,000. Associated Banc Corp raised its position in Sysco by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Associated Banc Corp now owns 281,022 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,937,000 after buying an additional 2,024 shares during the last quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp lifted its stake in Sysco by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 39,601 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,091,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the period. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sysco in the 3rd quarter valued at $71,000. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance increased its stake in shares of Sysco by 1.1% in the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 19,331 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,509,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the period. 83.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sysco Stock Performance

NYSE:SYY opened at $76.39 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.52 billion, a PE ratio of 19.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.20. Sysco Co. has a fifty-two week low of $69.03 and a fifty-two week high of $82.89. The company has a fifty day moving average of $75.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $74.75.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.13 by ($0.04). Sysco had a return on equity of 101.04% and a net margin of 2.44%. The company had revenue of $20.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.07 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Sysco Co. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 52.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on SYY shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Sysco from $91.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays boosted their price target on Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Sysco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Sysco currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.77.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total value of $216,427.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $966,831.65. This represents a 18.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 4,036 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.10, for a total transaction of $303,103.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 48,451 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,638,670.10. This trade represents a 7.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.54% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Sysco

Sysco Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. It operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments.