Riverbridge Partners LLC Decreases Position in Starbucks Corporation $SBUX

Riverbridge Partners LLC lessened its stake in shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 473,552 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 18,741 shares during the quarter. Riverbridge Partners LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $40,063,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Starbucks by 2.1% in the second quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,170 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $474,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Cooper Haims Advisors LLC grew its stake in Starbucks by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Cooper Haims Advisors LLC now owns 3,749 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $344,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 1.4% in the second quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 8,293 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $760,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the period. Diligent Investors LLC grew its position in shares of Starbucks by 1.9% during the second quarter. Diligent Investors LLC now owns 6,132 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $562,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sweeney & Michel LLC increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sweeney & Michel LLC now owns 5,666 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $538,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the period. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Starbucks Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of SBUX opened at $88.33 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $84.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $87.73. Starbucks Corporation has a twelve month low of $75.50 and a twelve month high of $117.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $100.44 billion, a PE ratio of 53.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.98.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The coffee company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.03). Starbucks had a net margin of 4.99% and a negative return on equity of 31.32%. The business had revenue of $9.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.80 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.99 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Starbucks’s payout ratio is currently 151.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp purchased 11,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $85.00 per share, with a total value of $994,500.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 53,096 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,513,160. The trade was a 28.26% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on SBUX shares. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Starbucks from $84.00 to $83.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $100.00 price objective on Starbucks and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Starbucks from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $101.44.

About Starbucks

Starbucks Corporation is a global coffeehouse chain and roaster that operates, licenses and franchises coffee shops and related retail businesses. Founded in Seattle, Washington in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl and Gordon Bowker, the company grew from a single store focused on whole-bean coffee and equipment into a broad consumer-facing brand. Howard Schultz, who joined the company later and served in senior leadership roles, is widely credited with transforming Starbucks into a mass-market specialty coffee retailer and expanding its footprint internationally.

Starbucks’ core activities center on the retail sale of hot and cold specialty beverages, whole-bean and packaged coffees, teas and ready-to-drink products, along with complementary food items and merchandise such as mugs and brewing equipment.