Blue Trust Inc. Sells 1,012 Shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Blue Trust Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 4.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 20,095 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,012 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Sysco were worth $1,569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Sysco by 1,240.0% during the 3rd quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 335 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Sysco during the third quarter worth $26,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new position in Sysco during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Focused Wealth Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Sysco in the third quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Canoe Financial LP bought a new stake in shares of Sysco in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. 83.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sysco Trading Up 2.7 %

NYSE SYY opened at $76.83 on Tuesday. Sysco Co. has a one year low of $69.03 and a one year high of $82.89. 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 company has a market capitalization of $37.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.18. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $76.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $75.99.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.13 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $20.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.47 billion. Sysco had a net margin of 2.44% and a return on equity of 101.04%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.07 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Sysco Co. will post 4.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.66%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 3rd. Sysco’s payout ratio is 52.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total transaction of $216,427.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 12,955 shares in the company, valued at $966,831.65. The trade was a 18.29 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 48,027 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.00, for a total transaction of $3,698,079.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 56,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,335,408. This trade represents a 46.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 83,306 shares of company stock worth $6,485,050 in the last three months. 0.54% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on SYY. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Sysco from $82.00 to $79.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. StockNews.com lowered Sysco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Melius began coverage on shares of Sysco in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. They set a “hold” rating and a $85.00 target price for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.79.

Sysco Company Profile

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.