Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) Shares Sold by Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC

Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC decreased its holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 0.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 62,995 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 384 shares during the quarter. Starbucks accounts for about 1.0% of Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $6,141,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 55.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,779,859 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,928,339,000 after purchasing an additional 7,015,375 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 2.9% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 11,762,684 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,146,744,000 after acquiring an additional 327,734 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 2.6% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,720,903 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $678,923,000 after acquiring an additional 221,718 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 108.1% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,475,156 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $348,391,000 after acquiring an additional 2,324,847 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank increased its position in shares of Starbucks by 0.3% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 3,362,100 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $327,771,000 after purchasing an additional 9,900 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total value of $148,414.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 80,124 shares in the company, valued at $7,975,542.96. This represents a 1.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp acquired 380 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,242 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,316,143. The trade was a 1.06 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of SBUX stock opened at $102.46 on Friday. Starbucks Co. has a 52 week low of $71.55 and a 52 week high of $103.32. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $97.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $87.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $116.17 billion, a PE ratio of 30.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.97.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80. The firm had revenue of $9.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.60 billion. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 46.39% and a net margin of 10.40%. Starbucks’s revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.06 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 3.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This is a boost from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Starbucks’s payout ratio is 73.72%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on SBUX. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Citigroup raised their target price on Starbucks from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Wedbush lowered their price target on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $95.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $115.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $85.00 to $118.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.77.

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.