Principal Financial Group Inc. Grows Holdings in Sysco Corporation (NYSE:SYY)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Sysco Corporation (NYSE:SYY - Free Report) by 2.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 600,688 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 13,509 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.12% of Sysco worth $45,076,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SYY. Rialto Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sysco by 188.7% in the first quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 332 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sysco in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sysco in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sysco by 48.4% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 429 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sysco in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. 83.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sysco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SYY traded down $0.14 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $76.39. The company had a trading volume of 1,671,680 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,237,379. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $73.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.30. Sysco Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $67.12 and a fifty-two week high of $82.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.37.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.02 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $19.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.11 billion. Sysco had a net margin of 2.36% and a return on equity of 107.96%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.96 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Sysco Corporation will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Sysco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 3rd. This is a positive change from Sysco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.83%. Sysco's payout ratio is presently 55.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on SYY shares. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Sysco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Sysco from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Sysco in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $78.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sysco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Sysco from $86.00 to $83.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $82.77.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sysco news, Director Sheila Talton sold 356 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.84, for a total value of $25,219.04. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 12,738 shares in the company, valued at $902,359.92. The trade was a 2.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.54% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.