Vision Capital Management Inc. Sells 13,123 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Vision Capital Management Inc. lowered its position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 13.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 83,029 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 13,123 shares during the quarter. Starbucks accounts for about 1.1% of Vision Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest position. Vision Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $7,576,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of SBUX. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Starbucks by 100.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,149,937 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,476,967,000 after purchasing an additional 7,598,146 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Starbucks by 55.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,779,859 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,928,339,000 after acquiring an additional 7,015,375 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted 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 valued at $256,282,000 after buying an additional 2,632,087 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its stake in Starbucks by 1,078.5% in 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 buying an additional 2,329,431 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI bought a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the third quarter worth $126,574,000. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Price Performance

SBUX opened at $112.25 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $127.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.21, a P/E/G ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $96.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $94.07. Starbucks Co. has a 1 year low of $71.55 and a 1 year high of $112.42.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 in the prior year, the company posted $0.90 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 3 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 78.71%.

Insider Activity

In other Starbucks news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total value of $148,414.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 80,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,975,542.96. This represents a 1.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SBUX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Redburn Atlantic reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $77.00 price objective (down from $84.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Wedbush upped their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given 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, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $105.33.

About Starbucks

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.