Heritage Investors Management Corp Trims Position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Heritage Investors Management Corp lessened its stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 5.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,611 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 350 shares during the quarter. Heritage Investors Management Corp’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $512,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at about $62,000. Weil Company Inc. increased its position in Starbucks by 31.2% during the 3rd quarter. Weil Company Inc. now owns 34,580 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $3,371,000 after purchasing an additional 8,222 shares during the period. Maia Wealth LLC increased its position in Starbucks by 69.1% during the 3rd quarter. Maia Wealth LLC now owns 18,582 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $1,805,000 after purchasing an additional 7,596 shares during the period. Investment Management Corp of Ontario increased its position in Starbucks by 48.6% during the 3rd quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 37,584 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $3,664,000 after purchasing an additional 12,300 shares during the period. Finally, Aljian Capital Management LLC increased its position in Starbucks by 48.5% during the 3rd quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC now owns 30,422 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $2,966,000 after purchasing an additional 9,936 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Up 1.3 %

Starbucks stock opened at $114.49 on Friday. Starbucks Co. has a 52-week low of $71.55 and a 52-week high of $115.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $130.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.93, a PEG ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $101.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $98.22.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.01. Starbucks had a net margin of 9.73% and a negative return on equity of 44.97%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.90 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on SBUX. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wedbush raised their price target on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Starbucks has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $105.75.

About Starbucks

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.