Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Boosts Stock Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 4.5% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 127,248 shares of the coffee company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,534 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $12,405,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 0.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 108,403,768 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $9,907,020,000 after buying an additional 470,498 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in Starbucks by 2.6% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,720,903 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $678,923,000 after purchasing an additional 221,718 shares during the last quarter. Flossbach Von Storch AG boosted its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Starbucks by 5.2% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,412,603 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $495,145,000 after purchasing an additional 266,570 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board purchased a new stake in Starbucks in the first quarter worth approximately $415,167,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Starbucks news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of Starbucks 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 75,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,057,327.62. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp purchased 380 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 36,242 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,316,143. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.03, for a total transaction of $305,597.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 75,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,057,327.62. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Performance

SBUX opened at $96.84 on Friday. Starbucks Co. has a fifty-two week low of $71.55 and a fifty-two week high of $107.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $109.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.68, a PEG ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a fifty day moving average of $94.90 and a 200 day moving average of $84.73.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The coffee company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93. Starbucks had a net margin of 11.16% and a negative return on equity of 49.38%. The business had revenue of $9.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.25 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. The business’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Starbucks from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. DZ Bank cut shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $85.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.44.

About Starbucks

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.