AIA Group Ltd Sells 932 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

AIA Group Ltd lessened its stake in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 34,334 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 932 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $3,296,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BCK Partners Inc. bought a new position in Starbucks in the 1st quarter valued at about $2,640,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 7.3% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 27,634 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $2,514,000 after purchasing an additional 1,872 shares during the period. Roundview Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Starbucks by 37.5% during the 1st quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 7,152 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $651,000 after purchasing an additional 1,952 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in Starbucks in the 1st quarter valued at $198,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. grew its holdings in Starbucks by 77.5% in the 1st quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 6,912 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $629,000 after buying an additional 3,017 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on SBUX. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Monday, April 1st. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Starbucks from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $116.00 to $112.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Starbucks from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 20th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Starbucks presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.43.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SBUX traded up $1.36 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $87.57. 7,774,100 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,354,843. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $91.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $94.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $99.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.97. Starbucks Co. has a 12 month low of $84.29 and a 12 month high of $115.48.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The coffee company reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.02). Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 50.76% and a net margin of 11.70%. The business had revenue of $9.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.75 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 4.03 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.60%. Starbucks’s payout ratio is 60.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.39, for a total transaction of $277,517.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 81,199 shares in the company, valued at $6,933,582.61. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 7,250 shares of company stock valued at $653,183 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks 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.