Ellsworth Advisors LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Ellsworth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 7.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,154 shares of the coffee company’s stock after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $495,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Quilter Plc bought a new position in shares of Starbucks in the first quarter worth about $208,530,000. Freedom Wealth Alliance LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. raised its position 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. Atticus Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Capital Advisors Group LLC. purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SBUX. StockNews.com cut shares of Starbucks from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 20th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Starbucks from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. BTIG Research reduced their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Starbucks from $107.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Finally, Gordon Haskett downgraded Starbucks from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $100.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $110.05.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.03, for a total value of $305,597.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 84,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,912,906.59. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,000 shares of company stock valued at $375,665. Insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of Starbucks stock traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $91.39. The stock had a trading volume of 6,481,499 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,584,698. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $93.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $95.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $103.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.98. Starbucks Co. has a 1 year low of $89.21 and a 1 year high of $115.48.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The coffee company reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.02). Starbucks had a net margin of 11.70% and a negative return on equity of 50.76%. The business had revenue of $9.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.75 EPS. Starbucks’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 4.06 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.96%.

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.