Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Acquires 3,589,537 Shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) by 59.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,623,282 shares of the coffee company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,589,537 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned 0.85% of Starbucks worth $943,948,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC lifted its position in Starbucks by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC now owns 3,421 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $312,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 2,860 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $261,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC lifted its position in Starbucks by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC now owns 1,014 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $93,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Taurus Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Starbucks by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Taurus Asset Management LLC now owns 21,895 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $1,998,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mendel Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Starbucks by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Mendel Capital Management LLC now owns 5,721 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $522,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $95.00 target price (up from $85.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $103.00 price objective (up previously from $95.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. CICC Research assumed coverage on Starbucks in a report on Monday, June 30th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $100.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Starbucks from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Starbucks from $88.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $101.27.

Starbucks Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of SBUX stock traded up $1.10 on Friday, reaching $92.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,032,266 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,577,803. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $92.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $94.41. Starbucks Corporation has a 1 year low of $74.75 and a 1 year high of $117.46. The company has a market capitalization of $104.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.19 and a beta of 1.02.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The coffee company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.14). The company had revenue of $9.46 billion for 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 company's revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.93 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current 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 given a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Starbucks's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 105.17%.

Starbucks 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.