Checchi Capital Advisers LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its position in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 6,175 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC’s holdings in Sysco were worth $472,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Sysco by 11.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,294,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,130,617,000 after purchasing an additional 2,721,449 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in Sysco during the 3rd quarter worth about $137,900,000. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in shares of Sysco by 52.3% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,719,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $208,666,000 after acquiring an additional 933,327 shares in the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Sysco by 11.2% in the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,685,547 shares of the company’s stock worth $521,874,000 after purchasing an additional 672,940 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC bought a new position in Sysco during the third quarter valued at approximately $44,722,000. 83.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sysco Price Performance

NYSE:SYY opened at $74.68 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.66. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $73.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $75.64. Sysco Co. has a 12-month low of $69.03 and a 12-month high of $82.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.17.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.93. Sysco had a net margin of 2.40% and a return on equity of 106.30%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Sysco Co. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Sysco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.73%. Sysco’s payout ratio is 52.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on SYY. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Sysco in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Sysco from $87.00 to $86.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Sysco from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Sysco from $86.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sysco presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $84.77.

Insider Transactions at Sysco

In related news, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 21,844 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $1,747,520.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 60,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,846,480. The trade was a 26.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 6,499 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $519,920.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 48,451 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,876,080. This trade represents a 11.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 76,370 shares of company stock worth $5,965,519. Insiders own 0.54% 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.