Equitable Holdings Inc. Makes New $5.06 Million Investment in Starbucks Corporation $SBUX

Equitable Holdings Inc. bought a new position in shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 49,486 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,057,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in SBUX. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Starbucks during the 2nd quarter worth about $8,504,509,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Starbucks in the second quarter worth about $1,581,287,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Starbucks in the fourth quarter worth about $1,232,650,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 65.9% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,447,854 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,637,704,000 after purchasing an additional 7,725,547 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the second quarter valued at approximately $779,790,000. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Starbucks Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $107.26 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $122.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 61.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a 50 day moving average of $104.95 and a 200-day moving average of $100.73. Starbucks Corporation has a one year low of $77.99 and a one year high of $110.51.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The coffee company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.19. Starbucks had a net margin of 5.17% and a negative return on equity of 34.10%. The business had revenue of $9.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.50 earnings per share. Starbucks’s revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.550-2.650 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is 142.53%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Brady Brewer sold 2,229 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.99, for a total transaction of $236,251.71. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 75,135 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,963,558.65. The trade was a 2.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 6,687 shares of company stock valued at $681,663. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on SBUX shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Starbucks from a “neutral” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Needham & Company LLC set a $120.00 price objective on Starbucks in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Starbucks from $105.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Raymond James Financial cut Starbucks to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $110.30.

Key Headlines Impacting Starbucks

Here are the key news stories impacting Starbucks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade: Robert W. Baird upgraded Starbucks to “strong buy,” signaling confidence in the company’s turnaround prospects and potentially supporting investor sentiment. Zacks report
• Positive Sentiment: Fall menu and marketing: Starbucks launched its seasonal menu, including the Pumpkin Spice Latte, supported by advertising featuring Martha Stewart. The promotion could drive customer traffic and strengthen seasonal sales. Starbucks launches fall menu Pumpkin Spice Latte advertising
• Positive Sentiment: Property transactions: A corporate Starbucks drive-thru in Jacksonville, Florida, was included in a $6.9 million pair of net-lease deals. While not a material financial event for Starbucks, the transaction highlights ongoing investor demand for Starbucks-occupied properties. Starbucks net-lease transaction
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation and operating backdrop: Starbucks recently exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, but revenue declined year over year. With a relatively high earnings multiple, investors may require sustained improvement from the company’s turnaround plan.
• Negative Sentiment: Union-led boycott: Starbucks Workers United called for a boycott tied to stalled contract negotiations, seeking $17 hourly wages and a contract covering more than 12,000 baristas. The action presents near-term traffic, sales and reputational risks. Starbucks union boycott
• Negative Sentiment: Consumer caution: Reports questioning whether consumers are rethinking coffee purchases raise concerns about traffic and demand, particularly if customers trade down or reduce premium beverage spending. Consumer caution report
• Negative Sentiment: Turnaround costs: Additional job cuts as Starbucks expands its roughly $2 billion overhaul may pressure near-term morale and execution, even though management expects restructuring to improve efficiency over time. Starbucks job cuts and turnaround

Starbucks Company Profile

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.