American National Bank & Trust Acquires 5,707 Shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

American National Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY - Free Report) by 392.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,161 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,707 shares during the period. American National Bank & Trust's holdings in Sysco were worth $537,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sysco in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Sysco in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Sherman Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Sysco during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Sysco during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Sysco by 53.0% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 430 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.41% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sysco news, Director Sheila Talton sold 356 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.84, for a total value of $25,219.04. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 12,738 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $902,359.92. This represents a 2.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SYY has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Sysco from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Sysco from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Sysco from $87.00 to $77.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Sysco in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $78.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $87.00 price target on shares of Sysco and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $83.00.

Sysco Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:SYY traded up $0.60 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $73.66. 2,655,101 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,329,731. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.66, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.68. Sysco Co. has a 12 month low of $67.12 and a 12 month high of $82.23. The company has a market cap of $35.71 billion, a PE ratio of 18.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $71.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $73.72.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.02 by ($0.06). Sysco had a return on equity of 106.30% and a net margin of 2.40%. The company had revenue of $19.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.96 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sysco Co. will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. This is a boost from Sysco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.93%. Sysco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.96%.

About Sysco

Sysco Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. It operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments.