Curat Global LLC Buys New Stake in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Curat Global LLC purchased a new position in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 7,130 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $535,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sysco by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 61,519,424 shares of the company's stock worth $4,703,775,000 after acquiring an additional 429,711 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Sysco by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 16,907,541 shares of the company's stock worth $1,292,751,000 after acquiring an additional 851,441 shares during the period. Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of Sysco by 143.7% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 12,184,114 shares of the company's stock worth $930,296,000 after acquiring an additional 7,184,754 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sysco by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,868,965 shares of the company's stock worth $905,120,000 after acquiring an additional 233,885 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in shares of Sysco by 27.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 8,991,476 shares of the company's stock worth $687,488,000 after acquiring an additional 1,928,002 shares during the period. 83.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sysco Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of SYY traded up $0.79 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $74.56. 2,722,564 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,327,979. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $71.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $73.71. Sysco Co. has a twelve month low of $67.12 and a twelve month high of $82.23. The stock has a market cap of $36.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.66.

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

Sysco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be paid a $0.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 3rd. This is a positive change from Sysco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.90%. Sysco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SYY has been the subject of several recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $87.00 target price on shares of Sysco and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Sysco in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $78.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Sysco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Sysco from $87.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Sysco from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $83.00.

Insider Activity at Sysco

In related news, Director Sheila Talton sold 356 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.84, for a total value of $25,219.04. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $902,359.92. This trade represents a 2.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.