Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC Buys 23,047 Shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC grew its stake in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 12.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 215,427 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,047 shares during the quarter. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Sysco were worth $16,472,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of SYY. Fortem Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Sysco by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Fortem Financial Group LLC now owns 3,875 shares of the company’s stock worth $296,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. S.A. Mason LLC boosted its position in Sysco by 10.7% in the fourth quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Sysco by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC now owns 4,049 shares of the company’s stock valued at $316,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in shares of Sysco by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $108,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Howard Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Sysco by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,370 shares of the company’s stock valued at $258,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.41% of the company’s stock.

Sysco Stock Performance

NYSE:SYY opened at $75.53 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $36.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.42, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.66, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 1.20. The business’s fifty day moving average is $73.66 and its 200 day moving average is $75.65. Sysco Co. has a 52-week low of $69.03 and a 52-week high of $82.33.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93. Sysco had a return on equity of 106.30% and a net margin of 2.40%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. Research analysts predict that Sysco Co. will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.70%. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SYY has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Sysco from $85.00 to $83.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of Sysco in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Sysco from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Melius initiated coverage on Sysco in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. They set a “hold” rating and a $85.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Sysco from $79.00 to $77.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.77.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 48,027 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.00, for a total transaction of $3,698,079.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 56,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,335,408. This represents a 46.03 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 6,499 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $519,920.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 48,451 shares in the company, valued at $3,876,080. This trade represents a 11.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 76,370 shares of company stock worth $5,965,519 in the last ninety days. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.