Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Has $14.15 Million Stock Holdings in Starbucks Corporation $SBUX

Key Points

• Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky reduced its stake in Starbucks by 14.2%, selling 27,893 shares and finishing the quarter with 167,982 shares valued at about $14.145 million.
• Analyst sentiment has turned more positive—Stifel and JPMorgan raised price targets—and strategic catalysts like Starbucks' new AI platform, loyalty-program changes, and tech cost cuts are being viewed as potential drivers of growth and margin improvement.
• Insiders sold a total of 6,958 shares in the last 90 days; Starbucks announced a quarterly dividend of $0.62 (2.5% yield), has a market cap near $112.4 billion, and set FY2026 EPS guidance of 2.15–2.40.

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky decreased its stake in Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) by 14.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 167,982 shares of the coffee company's stock after selling 27,893 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky's holdings in Starbucks were worth $14,145,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Collier Financial bought a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new stake in Starbucks during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Starbucks during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors acquired a new position in Starbucks in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Saranac Partners Ltd bought a new position in Starbucks in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company's stock.

Key Starbucks News

Here are the key news stories impacting Starbucks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Stifel raised its price target to $115 (from $105) and reiterated a Buy ahead of the April 28 report — a clear vote of confidence that supports near-term upside expectations. Stifel Boosts Starbucks (SBUX) Target, Sees Earnings In Line with Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target and kept an Overweight rating, reinforcing momentum from recent analyst upgrades that have helped lift sentiment into earnings. JPMorgan Raises Price Target on Starbucks
• Positive Sentiment: Starbucks unveiled a new AI platform that management and analysts say could expand personalization, speed service and attract new customers — a strategic catalyst investors view as extending long-term growth and margin opportunities. Starbucks Reveals Groundbreaking Artificial Intelligence (AI) Platform
• Positive Sentiment: Changes to the loyalty program are drawing value-seeking customers (higher redemptions of the new $2-off option), which could help traffic and comps if sustained. Starbucks' loyalty program changes are drawing value-conscious customers
• Positive Sentiment: Operational moves — paring back some tech roles, planning global tech hubs to bring work in-house and cut costs — are being framed as margin-improvement actions by investors. Starbucks Brewing up Global Tech Plan to Bring Jobs Back in-House and Slash Costs
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street previews (Zacks/Seeking Alpha) note potential “Back to Starbucks” progress and menu innovation but also flag seasonal margin pressures and cost headwinds — these create earnings risk/reward ambiguity ahead of Q2. Starbucks to Post Q2 Earnings: What's in the Cards for the Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: Nestlé extended its K-Cup alliance for Starbucks-branded pods in North America — a steady revenue stream for at-home coffee but likely modest near-term impact on store-level results. Nestlé Extends Starbucks K Cup Alliance
• Negative Sentiment: DA Davidson issued a Neutral rating, reflecting lingering skepticism from some shops; mixed analyst views can cap upside entering earnings. Starbucks Earns "Neutral" Rating from DA Davidson
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive pressure from rivals (e.g., Dutch Bros, Dunkin’) and questions about store footprint strategy (shift to exurbs, drive-thru focus) may pressure margins and same-store-sales in some markets. Starbucks rival challenges coffee giant's dominance

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Brady Brewer sold 1,641 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.12, for a total transaction of $159,373.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 86,605 shares in the company, valued at $8,411,077.60. This represents a 1.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sara Kelly sold 2,500 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.12, for a total transaction of $242,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 59,609 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,789,226.08. This represents a 4.03% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 6,958 shares of company stock worth $667,464 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Starbucks Stock Performance

NASDAQ SBUX opened at $98.67 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $112.41 billion, a PE ratio of 81.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.95. The business's 50-day moving average price is $96.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $90.49. Starbucks Corporation has a 12 month low of $75.50 and a 12 month high of $104.82.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.59 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $9.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.62 billion. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 28.66% and a net margin of 3.63%.Starbucks's revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.150-2.400 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Starbucks's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 204.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SBUX. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $103.00 price target (up from $100.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Barclays set a $116.00 price objective on Starbucks and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. DA Davidson reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $97.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $95.00 price target (up from $90.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $104.75.

Starbucks Profile

Starbucks Corporation is a global coffeehouse chain and roaster that operates, licenses and franchises coffee shops and related retail businesses. Founded in Seattle, Washington in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl and Gordon Bowker, the company grew from a single store focused on whole-bean coffee and equipment into a broad consumer-facing brand. Howard Schultz, who joined the company later and served in senior leadership roles, is widely credited with transforming Starbucks into a mass-market specialty coffee retailer and expanding its footprint internationally.

Starbucks' core activities center on the retail sale of hot and cold specialty beverages, whole-bean and packaged coffees, teas and ready-to-drink products, along with complementary food items and merchandise such as mugs and brewing equipment.

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