Empirical Finance LLC Sells 233 Shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Empirical Finance LLC cut its holdings in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,162 shares of the company’s stock after selling 233 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Sysco were worth $1,312,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. 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 worth $2,130,617,000 after purchasing an additional 2,721,449 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Sysco by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,685,547 shares of the company’s stock worth $521,874,000 after acquiring an additional 672,940 shares during the period. Primecap Management Co. CA lifted its position in shares of Sysco by 9.7% during the 3rd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 4,796,439 shares of the company’s stock valued at $374,410,000 after acquiring an additional 422,954 shares during the period. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sysco by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 4,790,665 shares of the company’s stock worth $366,789,000 after purchasing an additional 375,409 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of Sysco by 4.1% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,265,723 shares of the company’s stock worth $332,983,000 after purchasing an additional 168,163 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.41% of the company’s stock.

Sysco Stock Performance

NYSE:SYY opened at $71.13 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $75.78 and its 200-day moving average is $75.92. The stock has a market cap of $34.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.17. Sysco Co. has a 1-year low of $69.03 and a 1-year high of $82.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.66.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (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 previous year, the company posted $0.89 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Sysco Co. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Sysco Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 3rd. Sysco’s payout ratio is presently 52.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on SYY shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Sysco from $79.00 to $77.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. StockNews.com raised shares of Sysco from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays cut their target price on Sysco from $93.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on Sysco from $85.00 to $83.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sysco

In other news, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 48,027 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.00, for a total value of $3,698,079.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 56,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,335,408. The trade was a 46.03 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total transaction of $216,427.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 12,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $966,831.65. This trade represents a 18.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 79,270 shares of company stock worth $6,181,946. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

About Sysco

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.