Ellenbecker Investment Group Sells 670 Shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Ellenbecker Investment Group reduced its position in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 5.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,612 shares of the company’s stock after selling 670 shares during the period. Ellenbecker Investment Group’s holdings in Sysco were worth $888,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 2,721,449 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sysco by 26.1% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,623,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $615,076,000 after purchasing an additional 1,782,180 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 672,940 shares during the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA boosted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 422,954 shares during the period. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. increased its position in Sysco by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 4,790,665 shares of the company’s stock worth $366,789,000 after buying an additional 375,409 shares during the period. 83.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sysco Price Performance

Sysco stock opened at $73.71 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $75.76. Sysco Co. has a one year low of $69.03 and a one year high of $82.89. The company has a market capitalization of $36.21 billion, a PE ratio of 18.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by ($0.04). Sysco had a net margin of 2.44% and a return on equity of 101.04%. The company had revenue of $20.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.07 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Sysco Co. will post 4.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.77%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. Sysco’s payout ratio is 52.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SYY shares. StockNews.com raised Sysco from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Melius Research upgraded shares of Sysco to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Melius initiated coverage on shares of Sysco in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $85.00 target price for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $85.93.

Insider Activity

In other news, 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 in the company, valued at approximately $966,831.65. This represents a 18.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 6,499 shares of Sysco stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $519,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 48,451 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,876,080. This represents a 11.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 83,306 shares of company stock worth $6,485,050. 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.