Orca Investment Management LLC Raises Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Orca Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 6.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,494 shares of the coffee company’s stock after buying an additional 466 shares during the period. Orca Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $719,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SBUX. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 1,578.9% during the 3rd quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 319 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 133.1% during the 4th quarter. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY now owns 324 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Atticus Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 153.8% during the 4th quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC now owns 330 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Evolution Advisers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Starbucks

In other news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.39, for a total value of $277,517.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 81,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,933,582.61. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 7,250 shares of company stock valued at $651,738. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:SBUX traded down $0.19 during trading on Monday, hitting $88.06. The stock had a trading volume of 6,026,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,347,913. Starbucks Co. has a 12 month low of $84.29 and a 12 month high of $115.48. The company has a market capitalization of $99.70 billion, a PE ratio of 23.55, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.98. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $90.36 and its 200 day moving average is $94.30.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The coffee company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.02). Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 50.76% and a net margin of 11.70%. The firm had revenue of $9.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.75 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 3.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on SBUX. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Starbucks from $102.00 to $90.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Wedbush decreased their price objective on Starbucks from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Citigroup decreased their target price on Starbucks from $102.00 to $95.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 12th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating and issued a $100.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Starbucks from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $106.55.

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.