Kovack Advisors Inc. Acquires 140 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Kovack Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 1.8% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 8,019 shares of the coffee company’s stock after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $733,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in SBUX. Vima LLC bought a new stake in Starbucks in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1,578.9% during the third quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 319 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fairman Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 72.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SBUX traded down $0.57 during trading on Thursday, reaching $76.26. 4,906,747 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,392,467. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $79.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $87.66. Starbucks Co. has a 52-week low of $71.80 and a 52-week high of $107.66. The stock has a market cap of $86.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.94.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The coffee company reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $8.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.12 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 11.38% and a negative return on equity of 49.91%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.74 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.99%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.81%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SBUX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $105.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Guggenheim lowered their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Starbucks from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $108.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Starbucks from $120.00 to $92.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $94.54.

Insider Activity at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.39, for a total value of $277,517.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 81,199 shares in the company, valued at $6,933,582.61. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Starbucks news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.39, for a total value of $277,517.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 81,199 shares in the company, valued at $6,933,582.61. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 65,431 shares in the company, valued at $5,234,480. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,750 shares of company stock worth $878,893 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

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.