Versor Investments LP Makes New $1.38 Million Investment in Starbucks Corporation $SBUX

Key Points

• Versor Investments LP opened a new position in Starbucks in the fourth quarter, buying 16,400 shares valued at about $1.38 million.
• Starbucks reported quarterly earnings that beat analyst expectations, with EPS of $0.50 versus $0.44 expected and revenue of $9.53 billion, up 8.8% year over year.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on the stock, with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and average price target of $107, while insiders have recently sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

Versor Investments LP bought a new position in shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 16,400 shares of the coffee company's stock, valued at approximately $1,381,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Money Concepts Capital Corp boosted its stake in Starbucks by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 27,769 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $2,338,000 after purchasing an additional 1,622 shares during the last quarter. First National Advisers LLC boosted its stake in Starbucks by 28.9% during the 4th quarter. First National Advisers LLC now owns 11,656 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $982,000 after purchasing an additional 2,615 shares during the last quarter. KLCM Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Starbucks by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. KLCM Advisors Inc. now owns 3,424 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $288,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Trek Financial LLC boosted its stake in Starbucks by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Trek Financial LLC now owns 5,163 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $435,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs boosted its stake in Starbucks by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs now owns 45,513 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $3,833,000 after purchasing an additional 3,099 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SBUX has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $120.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, March 9th. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $117.00 target price on shares of Starbucks and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Starbucks has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $107.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Starbucks news, CEO Brady Brewer sold 2,229 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.81, for a total value of $233,621.49. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 81,559 shares in the company, valued at $8,548,198.79. This represents a 2.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Sara Kelly sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $210,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 57,653 shares in the company, valued at $6,053,565. This represents a 3.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 11,187 shares of company stock worth $1,111,085 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Starbucks Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $105.74 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $120.51 billion, a PE ratio of 80.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.01. The firm's 50-day moving average is $97.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.82. Starbucks Corporation has a 1 year low of $77.99 and a 1 year high of $108.04.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The coffee company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.06. Starbucks had a net margin of 3.89% and a negative return on equity of 29.24%. The company had revenue of $9.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.41 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.250-2.450 EPS. Analysts expect that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Starbucks's dividend payout ratio is presently 187.88%.

Starbucks Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SBUX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.