TCW Group Inc. Makes New Investment in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

TCW Group Inc. bought a new stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 17,939 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,721,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SBUX. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1,578.9% in the 3rd 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 last quarter. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY lifted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 133.1% during the fourth quarter. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY now owns 324 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Atticus Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Starbucks by 153.8% in the 4th quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC now owns 330 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Evolution Advisers Inc. acquired a new position in Starbucks in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new position in Starbucks during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SBUX. William Blair lowered shares of Starbucks from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. UBS Group cut their target price on Starbucks from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Wedbush decreased their price target on Starbucks from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Starbucks from $116.00 to $112.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Guggenheim reduced their target price on Starbucks from $100.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 19th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Starbucks presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $96.43.

Starbucks Price Performance

NASDAQ:SBUX traded up $0.56 on Friday, reaching $78.87. The stock had a trading volume of 10,746,166 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,810,700. Starbucks Co. has a 12-month low of $71.80 and a 12-month high of $107.66. The company has a market cap of $89.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.97. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $84.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.79.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The coffee company reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $8.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.12 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 11.38% and a negative return on equity of 49.91%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.74 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.81%.

Insider Activity at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.39, for a total value of $277,517.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 81,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,933,582.61. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 3,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $300,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 65,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,234,480. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.39, for a total value of $277,517.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 81,199 shares in the company, valued at $6,933,582.61. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 7,750 shares of company stock worth $642,050. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.