Howard Capital Management Inc. Lowers Position in Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Key Points

• Howard Capital Management Inc. reduced its stock holdings in Starbucks Corporation by 13.3%, owning 28,848 shares valued at approximately $2.83 million after selling 4,415 shares in the first quarter.
• Starbucks reported $0.50 earnings per share for the latest quarter, missing estimates of $0.64, while revenue was $9.46 billion, surpassing expectations of $9.29 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.61, scheduled for payment on August 29, with a yield of 2.62% and a dividend payout ratio of 88.41%.

Howard Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) by 13.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 28,848 shares of the coffee company's stock after selling 4,415 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Starbucks were worth $2,830,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in Starbucks by 20.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 54,924,230 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $5,011,796,000 after purchasing an additional 9,174,682 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 27.0% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 25,128,649 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $2,292,989,000 after buying an additional 5,348,790 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,826,001 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $2,259,516,000 after buying an additional 548,245 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,573,337 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $1,238,567,000 after buying an additional 600,151 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,457,981 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $1,045,541,000 after buying an additional 944,897 shares during the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of SBUX traded down $2.30 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $86.86. The stock had a trading volume of 16,215,272 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,280,721. The firm has a market cap of $98.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.44, a PEG ratio of 5.08 and a beta of 1.02. Starbucks Corporation has a 12 month low of $72.72 and a 12 month high of $117.46. The business has a fifty day moving average of $91.68 and a 200 day moving average of $94.62.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The coffee company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $9.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.29 billion. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 36.23% and a net margin of 7.18%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.93 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Starbucks's payout ratio is 105.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SBUX has been the topic of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $115.00 target price (up previously from $100.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Starbucks from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $99.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. TD Securities reissued a "hold" rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $101.27.

Starbucks Company 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.