Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Reduces Holdings in Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. significantly reduced its stake in Starbucks Corporation by 90.8%, now holding only 3,352 shares valued at approximately $329,000.
• Starbucks announced a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, with an annualized payout of $2.44, representing a yield of 2.6%.
• Starbucks' stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $101.27, with recent analyst ratings indicating a mix of sell, hold, and buy recommendations.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) by 90.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,352 shares of the coffee company's stock after selling 33,260 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Starbucks were worth $329,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of SBUX. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on SBUX shares. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $115.00 price objective (up from $100.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Starbucks from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Starbucks from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Starbucks from $79.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on Starbucks from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $101.27.

Starbucks Price Performance

SBUX stock traded up $1.10 during trading on Friday, hitting $92.12. 8,032,266 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,577,803. Starbucks Corporation has a 1 year low of $74.75 and a 1 year high of $117.46. The firm's 50 day moving average is $92.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $94.39. The stock has a market cap of $104.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.25 and a beta of 1.02.

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

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Starbucks's dividend payout ratio is presently 105.17%.

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.