Howland Capital Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Howland Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 7.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 6,761 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 508 shares during the period. Howland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $617,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Benedict Financial Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Benedict Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 45,508 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $4,153,000 after purchasing an additional 1,493 shares during the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $812,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Starbucks by 14.7% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 45,818 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $4,181,000 after purchasing an additional 5,877 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 24,310 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $2,218,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Starbucks by 26.0% during the fourth quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 48,206 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $4,399,000 after buying an additional 9,961 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ SBUX opened at $112.20 on Monday. Starbucks Co. has a 12-month low of $71.55 and a 12-month high of $112.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $127.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $97.12 and a 200 day moving average of $94.70.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.01. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 44.97% and a net margin of 9.73%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.90 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 3 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.17%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 78.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on SBUX. BTIG Research increased their target price on Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Redburn Atlantic reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $77.00 price target (down from $84.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $105.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total transaction of $148,414.14. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 80,124 shares in the company, valued at $7,975,542.96. This trade represents a 1.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Starbucks Profile

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.