Sentry Investment Management LLC Raises Stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Sentry Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 5.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,080 shares of the coffee company’s stock after buying an additional 560 shares during the quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $983,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SBUX. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Starbucks during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 498.2% in the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 335 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. 72.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp bought 380 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 36,242 shares in the company, valued at $3,316,143. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp acquired 380 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 36,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,316,143. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Rachel Ruggeri sold 3,290 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.16, for a total value of $299,916.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 62,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,697,682.32. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.98% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Starbucks from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $85.00 to $118.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.32.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Starbucks stock opened at $97.03 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $96.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $85.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $109.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.97. Starbucks Co. has a 1 year low of $71.55 and a 1 year high of $107.66.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80. The business had revenue of $9.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.60 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 10.40% and a negative return on equity of 46.39%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.06 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 3.22 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.51%. This is a boost from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Starbucks’s payout ratio is presently 68.88%.

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.