Smith Salley Wealth Management Has $3.44 Million Stock Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Smith Salley Wealth Management boosted its stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,660 shares of the coffee company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,112 shares during the period. Smith Salley Wealth Management’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $3,437,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 529.9% during the 4th quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 4,869 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $444,000 after acquiring an additional 4,096 shares in the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 22,427 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $2,046,000 after purchasing an additional 2,488 shares in the last quarter. Gill Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Gill Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,501 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $502,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares during the last quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 13.0% in the fourth quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,854 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $443,000 after buying an additional 560 shares during the period. Finally, Howard Financial Services LTD. bought a new position in Starbucks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $242,000. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Up 0.7 %

NASDAQ SBUX opened at $95.13 on Friday. Starbucks Co. has a 52 week low of $71.55 and a 52 week high of $103.32. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $95.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $91.50. The company has a market cap of $107.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.99.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released 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 firm had revenue of $9.07 billion for 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 business’s revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.06 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Starbucks news, 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 transaction of $143,849.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 65,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,503,747.36. The trade was a 2.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on SBUX. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wedbush decreased their price objective on Starbucks from $98.00 to $95.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded 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 report on Tuesday, September 24th. Bank of America decreased their price target on Starbucks from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Starbucks from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Starbucks has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.