Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the thirty-three analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eleven have given a hold recommendation and twenty have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $107.4828.

SBUX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BTIG Research cut Starbucks from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. New Street Research set a $90.00 price target on Starbucks in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Starbucks in a research note on Monday, March 9th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Starbucks from a "neutral" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Evercore raised their price objective on Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Starbucks stock opened at $106.82 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $98.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $92.36. Starbucks has a one year low of $77.99 and a one year high of $108.88. The stock has a market cap of $121.74 billion, a PE ratio of 80.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.01.

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

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Starbucks's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 187.88%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Sara Kelly sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.12, for a total value of $242,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 59,609 shares in the company, valued at $5,789,226.08. This trade represents a 4.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Brady Brewer sold 2,229 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.81, for a total value of $233,621.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 81,559 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,548,198.79. The trade was a 2.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,187 shares of company stock valued at $1,111,085. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Beta Wealth Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1.7% in the first quarter. Beta Wealth Group Inc. now owns 6,114 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $548,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. NWF Advisory Services Inc. grew its holdings in Starbucks by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. NWF Advisory Services Inc. now owns 4,349 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $366,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Starbucks by 0.8% during the first quarter. Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,610 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $1,219,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Aerodigm Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Starbucks by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Aerodigm Wealth LLC now owns 4,245 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $357,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the period. Finally, River Street Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Starbucks by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. River Street Advisors LLC now owns 13,516 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $1,138,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Starbucks News

Here are the key news stories impacting Starbucks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Investors appear to like the cost-cutting focus, as the layoffs and office closures are intended to improve efficiency, support margin recovery, and help fund the company’s turnaround strategy. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street sentiment also remains supportive, with TD Cowen upgrading Starbucks to Buy and raising its price target, citing improving sales drivers, margin recovery, and multiple tangible catalysts for the comeback story. Analyst upgrade article
• Neutral Sentiment: The restructuring comes with a sizable estimated $400 million charge, which could weigh on near-term earnings even as management argues the actions will strengthen the business over time. New York Times article
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent trading also reflects a broader re-rating of the stock, which has been pushing toward new highs as investors gain confidence in CEO Brian Niccol’s turnaround plan. CNBC article
• Negative Sentiment: The job cuts and office closures also signal that the turnaround is still in progress, and the company may continue to face pressure from restructuring costs and execution risk before the benefits show up in results. Wall Street Journal article

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.

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