Gries Financial LLC Acquires Shares of 23,448 Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Gries Financial LLC bought a new stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 23,448 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,825,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Starbucks by 0.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 108,403,768 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $9,907,020,000 after buying an additional 470,498 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at $1,240,652,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Starbucks by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 11,359,790 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,090,654,000 after purchasing an additional 260,489 shares during the last quarter. Flossbach Von Storch AG boosted its stake in Starbucks by 106.7% in the first quarter. Flossbach Von Storch AG now owns 5,612,687 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $512,943,000 after purchasing an additional 2,897,282 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,511,378 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $529,147,000 after purchasing an additional 166,010 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Price Performance

SBUX traded down $0.61 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $92.57. The company had a trading volume of 1,721,330 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,971,860. Starbucks Co. has a 12 month low of $71.55 and a 12 month high of $107.66. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $81.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $83.84. The company has a market cap of $104.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.50, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.96.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The coffee company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93. The firm had revenue of $9.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.25 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 11.16% and a negative return on equity of 49.38%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.00 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 3.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. Starbucks’s payout ratio is 62.81%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.03, for a total value of $305,597.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 75,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,057,327.62. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Starbucks news, CEO Rachel Ruggeri sold 3,290 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.16, for a total transaction of $299,916.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 62,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,697,682.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.03, for a total value of $305,597.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 75,054 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,057,327.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,790 shares of company stock valued at $865,514 in the last quarter. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on SBUX shares. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Starbucks from $120.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Baird R W upgraded Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Starbucks from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Starbucks presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $99.21.

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.