Starbucks Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Traders acquired 43,990 call options on the company. This is an increase of 53% compared to the typical daily volume of 28,843 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $112.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Starbucks from a “strong sell” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Guggenheim restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $97.00 target price (up from $95.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group lowered shares of Starbucks from a “neutral” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Starbucks in a report on Thursday, May 14th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $107.48.

Starbucks News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Starbucks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Starbucks is reviewing options for its Japan unit, including a potential stake sale or IPO, could unlock value and reinforce the company’s asset-light strategy. Reuters: Starbucks mulls options for Japan business
• Positive Sentiment: Management’s growth messaging remains constructive, with CEO comments about further overseas expansion and room for more U.S. stores supporting the turnaround narrative. TipRanks: Starbucks stock turns frothy as CEO talks international expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Starbucks is also drawing attention for product and brand momentum, including the return of the Bearista Cup tied to World Cup promotion, which may help traffic and merchandise sales. TipRanks: The Bearista Cup returns for the World Cup

Starbucks Stock Performance

Starbucks stock traded up $3.20 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $101.96. The stock had a trading volume of 5,310,746 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,545,764. Starbucks has a twelve month low of $77.99 and a twelve month high of $108.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $116.20 billion, a PE ratio of 77.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.98. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $99.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $94.47.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The coffee company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.06. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 29.24% and a net margin of 3.89%.The firm had revenue of $9.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.41 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.250-2.450 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Starbucks will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 187.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Brady Brewer sold 2,229 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.81, for a total transaction of $233,621.49. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 81,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,548,198.79. This represents a 2.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Sara Kelly sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $210,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 57,653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,053,565. The trade was a 3.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 8,099 shares of company stock worth $804,907. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Starbucks

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Starbucks by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 114,410,675 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $9,634,523,000 after buying an additional 971,773 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in Starbucks by 11.4% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 85,460,350 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $7,229,968,000 after buying an additional 8,774,198 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in Starbucks by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 84,727,405 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $7,135,228,000 after buying an additional 7,007,268 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 47,869,056 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $4,031,053,000 after purchasing an additional 327,161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 26,373,084 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $2,212,153,000 after purchasing an additional 225,168 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

About Starbucks

Starbucks Corporation is a global coffeehouse chain and roaster that operates, licenses and franchises coffee shops and related retail businesses. Founded in Seattle, Washington in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl and Gordon Bowker, the company grew from a single store focused on whole-bean coffee and equipment into a broad consumer-facing brand. Howard Schultz, who joined the company later and served in senior leadership roles, is widely credited with transforming Starbucks into a mass-market specialty coffee retailer and expanding its footprint internationally.

Starbucks’ core activities center on the retail sale of hot and cold specialty beverages, whole-bean and packaged coffees, teas and ready-to-drink products, along with complementary food items and merchandise such as mugs and brewing equipment.