Swedbank AB Sells 398,079 Shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Swedbank AB lessened its holdings in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 19.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,610,941 shares of the company’s stock after selling 398,079 shares during the period. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Sysco were worth $123,173,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Sysco by 1,240.0% in the 3rd quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 335 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sysco during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sysco in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Focused Wealth Management Inc purchased a new position in Sysco during the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Canoe Financial LP bought a new stake in Sysco during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sysco news, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 4,036 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.10, for a total transaction of $303,103.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 48,451 shares in the company, valued at $3,638,670.10. This represents a 7.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 48,027 shares of Sysco stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 56,304 shares in the company, valued at $4,335,408. This represents a 46.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 83,306 shares of company stock valued at $6,485,050 in the last ninety days. 0.54% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Sysco Price Performance

SYY traded up $0.07 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $72.35. 551,587 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,027,591. The company has a market cap of $35.54 billion, a PE ratio of 18.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.18. Sysco Co. has a 1 year low of $69.03 and a 1 year high of $82.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $76.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $76.03.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93. Sysco had a return on equity of 101.04% and a net margin of 2.44%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.89 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sysco Co. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 3rd. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SYY has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group cut their price target on Sysco from $87.00 to $86.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sysco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Melius Research raised shares of Sysco to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Sysco from $93.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sysco currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $85.36.

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.