Lafayette Investments Inc. Trims Stake in Starbucks Corporation $SBUX

Lafayette Investments Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 9.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 57,904 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 5,946 shares during the quarter. Starbucks comprises about 1.1% of Lafayette Investments Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Lafayette Investments Inc.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $5,188,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SBUX. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter worth about $1,149,000. Czech National Bank raised its position in shares of Starbucks by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 299,833 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $25,249,000 after buying an additional 11,135 shares during the last quarter. Goodman Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,811,000. Wealth Enhancement Trust Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $875,000. Finally, Third View Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,135,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Starbucks news, CEO Brady Brewer sold 2,229 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.81, for a total transaction of $233,621.49. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 81,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,548,198.79. The trade was a 2.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Sara Kelly sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $210,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 57,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,053,565. This represents a 3.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 8,687 shares of company stock worth $863,707 in the last quarter. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Starbucks Stock Performance

SBUX opened at $104.27 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $101.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $96.45. Starbucks Corporation has a 1 year low of $77.99 and a 1 year high of $108.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $118.84 billion, a PE ratio of 78.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.98.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The coffee company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $9.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.17 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 3.89% and a negative return on equity of 29.24%. Starbucks’s revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.41 earnings per share. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.250-2.450 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 187.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on SBUX shares. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $99.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Scotiabank lowered Starbucks from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Wedbush assumed coverage on Starbucks in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, UBS Group downgraded Starbucks from a “neutral” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Starbucks presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $108.92.

Starbucks Company Profile

Starbucks Corporation is a global coffeehouse chain and roaster that operates, licenses and franchises coffee shops and related retail businesses. Founded in Seattle, Washington in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl and Gordon Bowker, the company grew from a single store focused on whole-bean coffee and equipment into a broad consumer-facing brand. Howard Schultz, who joined the company later and served in senior leadership roles, is widely credited with transforming Starbucks into a mass-market specialty coffee retailer and expanding its footprint internationally.

Starbucks’ core activities center on the retail sale of hot and cold specialty beverages, whole-bean and packaged coffees, teas and ready-to-drink products, along with complementary food items and merchandise such as mugs and brewing equipment.