OLD Republic International Corp Decreases Position in Sysco Corporation (NYSE:SYY)

OLD Republic International Corp lowered its stake in shares of Sysco Corporation (NYSE:SYY - Free Report) by 21.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 620,200 shares of the company's stock after selling 164,500 shares during the period. Sysco accounts for about 1.8% of OLD Republic International Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. OLD Republic International Corp owned approximately 0.13% of Sysco worth $46,540,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rialto Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Sysco by 188.7% in the first quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 332 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Sysco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Sysco in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sysco during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.41% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on SYY shares. Barclays dropped their target price on Sysco from $87.00 to $77.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Sysco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Sysco from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Sysco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Sysco from $86.00 to $83.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $82.77.

Sysco Stock Performance

SYY stock traded up $1.14 during trading on Thursday, hitting $77.47. 2,435,148 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,234,184. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.37, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Sysco Corporation has a 1 year low of $67.12 and a 1 year high of $82.23. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $73.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.30. The company has a market cap of $37.55 billion, a PE ratio of 20.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.81.

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

Sysco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders 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 represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.79%. This is an increase from Sysco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. Sysco's dividend payout ratio is currently 55.96%.

Insider Activity at Sysco

In other news, Director Sheila Talton sold 356 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.84, for a total transaction of $25,219.04. Following the transaction, the director owned 12,738 shares in the company, valued at $902,359.92. This trade represents a 2.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.54% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Sysco

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.