Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) Trading Up 1.5%

Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)’s stock price traded up 1.5% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $73.80 and last traded at $73.59. 5,950,420 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 38% from the average session volume of 9,665,246 shares. The stock had previously closed at $72.50.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SBUX. DZ Bank downgraded shares of Starbucks from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Starbucks from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Starbucks from $120.00 to $92.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Barclays decreased their price target on Starbucks from $116.00 to $112.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Starbucks from $105.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $96.43.

Starbucks Trading Up 1.4 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $83.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.27, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.97. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $88.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $93.53.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The coffee company reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.11). Starbucks had a net margin of 11.38% and a negative return on equity of 49.91%. The business had revenue of $8.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.74 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.39, for a total transaction of $277,517.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 81,199 shares in the company, valued at $6,933,582.61. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 7,250 shares of company stock worth $651,738 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Starbucks

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Vima LLC purchased a new stake in Starbucks in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Starbucks during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Fairman Group LLC purchased a new position in Starbucks during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. increased its stake in Starbucks by 1,578.9% in the third quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 319 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. 72.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.