Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) Shares Sold by Meeder Asset Management Inc.

Meeder Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 30.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 649 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 280 shares during the quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $63,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Riverview Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 3,199 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $312,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Essex Savings Bank raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Essex Savings Bank now owns 7,250 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $707,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the period. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 39.4% in the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 428 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. Childress Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,727 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $266,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the period. Finally, Keystone Wealth Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Keystone Wealth Services LLC now owns 10,151 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $990,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Starbucks stock opened at $98.26 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $111.35 billion, a PE ratio of 29.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.97. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $97.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $86.70. Starbucks Co. has a twelve month low of $71.55 and a twelve month high of $104.68.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.80. Starbucks had a net margin of 10.40% and a negative return on equity of 46.39%. The company had revenue of $9.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.06 EPS. Starbucks’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. This is a positive change from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.48%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is 73.72%.

Insider Transactions at Starbucks

In other news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp bought 380 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $91.50 per share, for a total transaction of $34,770.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 36,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,316,143. This represents a 1.06 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,452 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.07, for a total transaction of $143,849.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 65,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,503,747.36. This trade represents a 2.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Baird R W raised shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Wedbush dropped their price target on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $95.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised shares of Starbucks from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $81.00 to $110.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.81.

About Starbucks

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.