Brown Financial Advisors Boosts Stock Position in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Brown Financial Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,224 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the quarter. Brown Financial Advisors’ holdings in Sysco were worth $476,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp increased 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 worth $2,130,617,000 after buying an additional 2,721,449 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. grew 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 valued at $521,874,000 after acquiring an additional 672,940 shares during the period. Primecap Management Co. CA increased its stake 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 worth $374,410,000 after purchasing an additional 422,954 shares during the last quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 375,409 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in Sysco by 4.1% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,265,723 shares of the company’s stock valued at $332,983,000 after purchasing an additional 168,163 shares during the last quarter. 83.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sysco Price Performance

SYY stock opened at $73.64 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $73.85 and a 200-day moving average of $75.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.17. Sysco Co. has a 12 month low of $69.03 and a 12 month 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 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 business posted $0.89 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Sysco Co. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on SYY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Sysco from $86.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of Sysco in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Sysco from $79.00 to $77.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sysco currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 6,499 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $519,920.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 21,844 shares of Sysco stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $1,747,520.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 60,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,846,480. The trade was a 26.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 76,370 shares of company stock worth $5,965,519 over the last ninety days. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Sysco 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.