Maverick Capital Ltd. Lowers Position in Starbucks Corporation $SBUX

Key Points

• Maverick Capital Ltd. significantly reduced its holdings in Starbucks Corporation, lowering its shares by 98.7% to 13,674 shares during the 1st quarter, currently valued at approximately $1.34 million.
• Wall Street analysts remain optimistic, with multiple firms raising their price targets for Starbucks, indicating a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $104.40.
• Starbucks recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, representing an annual yield of 2.8%, although its payout ratio stands at a high 105.17%.

Maverick Capital Ltd. cut its position in shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) by 98.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,674 shares of the coffee company's stock after selling 1,007,093 shares during the period. Maverick Capital Ltd.'s holdings in Starbucks were worth $1,341,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. One Wealth Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 1st quarter worth $518,000. Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 1st quarter worth $609,000. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. raised its position in shares of Starbucks by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. now owns 5,626 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $552,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its position in shares of Starbucks by 15.0% in the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 5,618 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $551,000 after acquiring an additional 734 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Saudi Central Bank acquired a new stake in Starbucks in the first quarter worth about $44,000. 72.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Starbucks Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of SBUX traded down $1.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $85.43. The company had a trading volume of 9,037,892 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,728,275. Starbucks Corporation has a 52-week low of $75.50 and a 52-week high of $117.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $97.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.82, a PEG ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $91.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $91.83.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last released 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 business had revenue of $9.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 period in the previous year, the company posted $0.93 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were issued a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. Starbucks's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 105.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SBUX shares. Citigroup dropped their price target on Starbucks from $100.00 to $99.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $106.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $95.00 price objective (up from $85.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Starbucks from a "hold" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $76.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on Starbucks from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $104.40.

About Starbucks

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.