Alpha Cubed Investments LLC Lowers Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Alpha Cubed Investments LLC reduced its position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 33.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,413 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 14,466 shares during the quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $2,593,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SBUX. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $49,000. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in Starbucks during the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Starbucks during the third quarter worth $71,000. 72.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total transaction of $148,414.14. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 80,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,975,542.96. This represents a 1.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup raised their price objective on Starbucks from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. BTIG Research boosted their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $115.00 target price for the company. 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 report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Starbucks from $110.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Starbucks has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.92.

Starbucks Price Performance

Shares of SBUX stock opened at $95.13 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $107.86 billion, a PE ratio of 28.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.99. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $95.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.84. Starbucks Co. has a 12 month low of $71.55 and a 12 month high of $103.32.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 46.39% and a net margin of 10.40%. The firm had revenue of $9.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.06 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.72%.

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.