USS Investment Management Ltd Reduces Stock Holdings in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

USS Investment Management Ltd decreased its stake in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY - Free Report) by 18.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 129,951 shares of the company's stock after selling 29,505 shares during the period. USS Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Sysco were worth $9,937,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYY. Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sysco in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Sysco in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Sysco during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Sherman Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Sysco during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Sysco by 53.0% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 430 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.41% of the company's stock.

Sysco Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of SYY stock traded down $0.47 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $71.51. 2,628,415 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,352,029. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $71.65 and a 200 day moving average of $73.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.66. Sysco Co. has a 1 year low of $67.12 and a 1 year high of $82.23. The firm has a market cap of $34.67 billion, a PE ratio of 18.38, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.80.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.02 by ($0.06). Sysco had a return on equity of 106.30% and a net margin of 2.40%. The company had revenue of $19.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.96 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Sysco Co. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Sysco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. This is a positive change from Sysco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.02%. Sysco's dividend payout ratio is currently 55.96%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sheila Talton sold 356 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.84, for a total transaction of $25,219.04. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,738 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $902,359.92. This represents a 2.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SYY has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Sysco from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $87.00 price target on Sysco and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Sysco from $86.00 to $83.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Sysco from $79.00 to $77.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of Sysco from $87.00 to $77.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $83.00.

Sysco Company Profile

Sysco Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. It operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments.