ARS Investment Partners LLC Increases Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

ARS Investment Partners LLC grew its holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 22.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,940 shares of the coffee company’s stock after acquiring an additional 541 shares during the period. ARS Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $268,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 179,398 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $16,370,000 after acquiring an additional 764 shares in the last quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC now owns 17,664 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,612,000 after acquiring an additional 1,214 shares in the last quarter. Rezny Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Rezny Wealth Management Inc. now owns 15,547 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,419,000 after acquiring an additional 570 shares in the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 25.0% in the fourth quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,014 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $366,000 after acquiring an additional 804 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cove Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at about $265,000. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Starbucks Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $95.13 on Tuesday. Starbucks Co. has a 52-week low of $71.55 and a 52-week high of $103.32. The stock has a market cap of $107.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.99. The business’s 50 day moving average is $95.84 and its 200 day moving average is $91.71.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.80. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 46.39% and a net margin of 10.40%. The company had revenue of $9.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.06 earnings per share. Starbucks’s revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 3.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued 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 is currently 73.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SBUX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Starbucks from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Starbucks from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Citigroup boosted their target price on Starbucks from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Starbucks from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.92.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Starbucks news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total transaction of $148,414.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 80,124 shares in the company, valued at $7,975,542.96. This represents a 1.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.98% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Starbucks Company 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.