Associated Banc Corp Cuts Position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Associated Banc Corp cut its stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 84,541 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 4,399 shares during the quarter. Associated Banc Corp’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $7,714,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 100.6% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,149,937 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,476,967,000 after acquiring an additional 7,598,146 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in Starbucks by 55.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,779,859 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,928,339,000 after buying an additional 7,015,375 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Starbucks in the fourth quarter worth about $284,283,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Starbucks by 1,491.4% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,808,571 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $256,282,000 after buying an additional 2,632,087 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1,078.5% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,545,419 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $248,153,000 after purchasing an additional 2,329,431 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Starbucks Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $98.11 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $111.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.65, a PEG ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $104.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $99.22. Starbucks Co. has a 12 month low of $71.55 and a 12 month high of $117.46.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.01. Starbucks had a net margin of 9.73% and a negative return on equity of 44.97%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.90 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on SBUX shares. Wedbush raised their target price on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Starbucks from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Starbucks from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $105.75.

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.