SlateStone Wealth LLC Acquires 3,134 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

SlateStone Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 10.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 33,523 shares of the coffee company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,134 shares during the quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $3,219,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Willow Creek Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in Starbucks by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Willow Creek Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,305 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $302,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. now owns 4,200 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $383,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Advisory Inc. lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 2,260 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $206,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Herold Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Herold Advisors Inc. now owns 2,422 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Rodgers Brothers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Rodgers Brothers Inc. now owns 8,269 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $755,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Starbucks news, insider Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.03, for a total value of $305,597.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 84,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,912,906.59. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 7,000 shares of company stock valued at $629,738 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of Starbucks stock traded down $0.24 on Wednesday, reaching $87.63. The company had a trading volume of 619,697 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,319,888. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $90.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $94.39. The firm has a market cap of $99.21 billion, a PE ratio of 23.41, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.97. Starbucks Co. has a 52-week low of $84.29 and a 52-week high of $115.48.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The coffee company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $9.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.60 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.75 earnings per share. Starbucks’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 3.99 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. Starbucks’s payout ratio is currently 60.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on SBUX shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Starbucks from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Starbucks from $107.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 19th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Starbucks from $102.00 to $95.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $106.68.

Starbucks Company 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.