Washington Trust Bank Lowers Stock Position in Starbucks Corporation $SBUX

Key Points

• Washington Trust Bank cut its Starbucks stake by 13% in the second quarter, selling 20,097 shares and retaining 134,601 shares valued at approximately $13.8 million.
• Institutional ownership remains significant at 72.29%, with several major investors—including BlackRock, Bank of America, Norges Bank and T. Rowe Price—initiating or expanding Starbucks positions.
• Starbucks exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $0.85 EPS and $9.32 billion in revenue, while analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with a $110.30 price target.

Washington Trust Bank reduced its position in shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) by 13.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 134,601 shares of the coffee company's stock after selling 20,097 shares during the period. Starbucks accounts for about 1.0% of Washington Trust Bank's holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Washington Trust Bank's holdings in Starbucks were worth $13,755,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SBUX. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Starbucks in the 2nd quarter valued at about $8,504,509,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,581,287,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,232,650,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 65.9% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,447,854 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $1,637,704,000 after acquiring an additional 7,725,547 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the second quarter valued at approximately $779,790,000. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on SBUX shares. Zacks Research lowered Starbucks from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $117.00 price target on shares of Starbucks and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Starbucks presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $110.30.

Starbucks Trading Up 0.6%

Starbucks stock opened at $107.85 on Friday. Starbucks Corporation has a 12 month low of $77.99 and a 12 month high of $110.51. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $105.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $100.78. The company has a market cap of $122.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 61.98, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.97.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The coffee company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.19. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 34.10% and a net margin of 5.17%.The business had revenue of $9.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.17 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.50 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.550-2.650 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th were paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Starbucks's dividend payout ratio is presently 142.53%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Brady Brewer sold 2,229 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.99, for a total value of $236,251.71. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 75,135 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,963,558.65. This trade represents a 2.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 6,687 shares of company stock valued at $681,663. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

About Starbucks

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.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source