Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) Stock Price Target Raised at Citigroup

Key Points

• Citigroup raised Starbucks’ price target from $104 to $107 while maintaining a neutral rating, implying approximately 2.31% upside.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $110.79 based on 40 analyst ratings.
• Starbucks beat quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $0.80 versus the $0.72 consensus, but revenue fell 4.5% year over year to $9.14 billion, below estimates.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) had its price objective increased by Citigroup from $104.00 to $107.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the coffee company's stock. Citigroup's price objective suggests a potential upside of 2.31% from the company's current price.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on SBUX. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Starbucks from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $105.00 price objective (down from $112.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. CICC Research raised their price target on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Friday. Twenty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $110.79.

Starbucks Trading Up 0.9%

Starbucks stock traded up $0.91 on Monday, hitting $104.58. 4,366,206 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,126,771. The firm has a market cap of $119.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.01. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $99.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $99.70. Starbucks has a 1 year low of $77.99 and a 1 year high of $110.51.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.08. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 6.66%. The firm had revenue of $9.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. Starbucks's quarterly revenue was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Starbucks will post 3.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Starbucks

In related news, CEO Brady Brewer sold 2,229 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.60, for a total value of $235,382.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 73,149 shares in the company, valued at $7,724,534.40. The trade was a 2.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 6,687 shares of company stock valued at $685,935 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Starbucks

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Starbucks in the second quarter valued at approximately $8,504,509,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Starbucks in the second quarter valued at $1,581,287,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Starbucks during the 2nd quarter worth $779,790,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Starbucks during the 2nd quarter worth about $649,622,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LP purchased a new stake in Starbucks during the 2nd quarter worth about $289,019,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company's stock.

About Starbucks

Starbucks Corporation is a global specialty coffee company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1971, the company operates and licenses coffeehouses under the Starbucks brand, serving brewed coffee, espresso beverages, teas, cold drinks, food, and other ready-to-consume products.

In addition to its company-operated and licensed stores, Starbucks sells packaged coffee, tea, and single-serve products through grocery retailers, convenience stores, and other distribution channels.

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