Meridian Wealth Management LLC Purchases 7,000 Shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Key Points

• Meridian Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Starbucks Corporation by 62.2% during the first quarter, now owning 18,254 shares valued at approximately $1.79 million.
• Starbucks reported a quarterly EPS of $0.50, missing analysts' expectations, while its revenue of $9.46 billion exceeded estimates by $0.17 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $2.44 and a yield of 2.7%.

Meridian Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) by 62.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,254 shares of the coffee company's stock after buying an additional 7,000 shares during the quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Starbucks were worth $1,791,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 112,059,570 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $10,991,923,000 after purchasing an additional 953,361 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 20.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 54,924,230 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $5,011,796,000 after purchasing an additional 9,174,682 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the 1st quarter valued at $1,379,619,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted 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 valued at $1,238,567,000 after purchasing an additional 600,151 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 10,191,918 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $929,898,000 after purchasing an additional 267,736 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company's stock.

Starbucks Trading Up 0.9%

NASDAQ:SBUX traded up $0.81 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $94.18. 6,490,754 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,890,718. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $92.65 and a 200 day simple moving average of $94.31. Starbucks Corporation has a one year low of $75.50 and a one year high of $117.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $107.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.32 and a beta of 1.02.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last posted 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). Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 36.23% and a net margin of 7.18%. The business had revenue of $9.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.29 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.93 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $0.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Starbucks's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 105.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Starbucks from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. TD Securities reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday, June 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $95.00 price objective (up previously from $85.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Barclays raised their price objective on Starbucks from $106.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $105.00 price objective (up previously from $95.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $104.19.

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.