Covington Investment Advisors Inc. Has $6.07 Million Stock Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Covington Investment Advisors Inc. lowered its position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 1.5% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 62,285 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 919 shares during the period. Covington Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $6,072,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Starbucks during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. New Millennium Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Starbucks in the second quarter worth $26,000. Stephens Consulting LLC increased its position in shares of Starbucks by 498.2% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 335 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the period. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Starbucks in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Starbucks during the second quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Redburn Atlantic reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $77.00 price target (down previously from $84.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Starbucks from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Monday, August 26th. BTIG Research lifted their price target on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.77.

Starbucks Stock Down 0.6 %

SBUX stock opened at $101.84 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $97.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $87.38. Starbucks Co. has a 12-month low of $71.55 and a 12-month high of $103.32. The firm has a market cap of $115.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.77, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.97.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.80. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 46.39% and a net margin of 10.40%. 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 company earned $1.06 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 3.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.61 per share. This is an increase 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 2.40%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.72%.

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.