BNP Paribas Sells 80,282 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

BNP Paribas lessened its position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 78.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,659 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 80,282 shares during the period. BNP Paribas’ holdings in Starbucks were worth $2,109,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SBUX. 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 valued at $1,928,339,000 after purchasing an additional 7,015,375 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 1,466.3% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,350,932 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $260,870,000 after buying an additional 3,136,992 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the 2nd quarter valued at $243,910,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 1,078.5% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,545,419 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $248,153,000 after acquiring an additional 2,329,431 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Starbucks by 108.1% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,475,156 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $348,391,000 after acquiring an additional 2,324,847 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp acquired 380 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 36,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,316,143. This trade represents a 1.06 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total transaction of $148,414.14. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 80,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,975,542.96. This represents a 1.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Starbucks Stock Performance

SBUX stock opened at $100.68 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $114.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.97. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $97.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $87.55. Starbucks Co. has a fifty-two week low of $71.55 and a fifty-two week high of $103.32.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share 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 period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.06 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The firm 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 is a boost from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on SBUX shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Starbucks from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group boosted their target price on Starbucks from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Starbucks from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $92.00 to $115.00 in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Starbucks currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.77.

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.