Sysco (NYSE:SYY) Now Covered by Analysts at Melius

Melius initiated coverage on shares of Sysco (NYSE:SYY) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage issued a hold rating and a $85.00 price target on the stock.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sysco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.93.

Sysco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SYY traded up $0.34 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $77.42. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 91,703 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,136,432. Sysco has a 12-month low of $69.03 and a 12-month high of $82.89. The company has a market cap of $38.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.26. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $76.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $75.32.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $20.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.47 billion. Sysco had a return on equity of 101.04% and a net margin of 2.44%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.07 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Sysco will post 4.57 EPS for the current year.

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. Sysco’s payout ratio is 52.44%.

Insider Activity at Sysco

In other Sysco news, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total transaction of $216,427.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 12,955 shares in the company, valued at $966,831.65. The trade was a 18.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 6,499 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $519,920.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 48,451 shares in the company, valued at $3,876,080. The trade was a 11.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 35,279 shares of company stock valued at $2,786,971. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sysco

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Copley Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sysco in the 3rd quarter worth about $480,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sysco by 14.7% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 572,158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,038,000 after purchasing an additional 73,306 shares in the last quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp grew its position in Sysco by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 190,692 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,886,000 after buying an additional 10,519 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp increased its stake in Sysco by 14.7% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 4,238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $331,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Sysco by 51.3% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 37,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,891,000 after buying an additional 12,550 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.41% of the company’s stock.

Sysco Company Profile

Sysco Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. It operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments.