Morgan Stanley Lowers Sysco (NYSE:SYY) Price Target to $79.00

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) had its price objective cut by Morgan Stanley from $82.00 to $79.00 in a research report released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

SYY has been the subject of several other reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Melius initiated coverage on Sysco in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $85.00 price target for the company. Melius Research upgraded shares of Sysco to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Sysco from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.79.

Sysco Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:SYY opened at $73.71 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38. Sysco has a fifty-two week low of $69.03 and a fifty-two week high of $82.89. The stock has a market cap of $36.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.18. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $76.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $75.88.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $20.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.47 billion. Sysco had a net margin of 2.44% and a return on equity of 101.04%. Sysco’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.07 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Sysco will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.77%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sysco

In other Sysco news, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 48,027 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.00, for a total value of $3,698,079.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 56,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,335,408. The trade was a 46.03 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was 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 owns 12,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $966,831.65. This trade represents a 18.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 83,306 shares of company stock valued at $6,485,050 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sysco

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYY. Fortem Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sysco by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Fortem Financial Group LLC now owns 3,875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Sysco by 3.1% in the third quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,913 shares of the company’s stock valued at $383,000 after buying an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Sysco by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC now owns 4,049 shares of the company’s stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in shares of Sysco by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,410 shares of the company’s stock worth $108,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group grew its holdings in shares of Sysco by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group now owns 17,045 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,217,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.41% of the company’s stock.

About Sysco

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.