Sysco Corporation (NYSE:SYY) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Shares of Sysco Corporation (NYSE:SYY - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $83.00.

SYY has been the topic of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Sysco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Sysco in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $78.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Sysco from $86.00 to $83.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $87.00 target price on shares of Sysco and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd.

Sysco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SYY opened at $75.16 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $36.43 billion, a PE ratio of 19.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.81. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $72.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $73.34. Sysco has a one year low of $67.12 and a one year high of $82.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.37, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.26.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.02 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $19.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.11 billion. Sysco had a net margin of 2.36% and a return on equity of 107.96%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.96 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Sysco will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Sysco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.54 per share. This is an increase from Sysco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. Sysco's payout ratio is presently 52.85%.

Insider Transactions at Sysco

In other news, Director Sheila Talton sold 356 shares of Sysco stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.84, for a total transaction of $25,219.04. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 12,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $902,359.92. The trade was a 2.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sysco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Sysco by 205.5% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 100,977 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,721,000 after purchasing an additional 67,920 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its position in Sysco by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 48,369 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,698,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Sysco during the fourth quarter valued at $8,813,000. Flputnam Investment Management Co. lifted its position in Sysco by 117.4% during the fourth quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 38,407 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,937,000 after purchasing an additional 20,738 shares during the period. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Sysco during the fourth quarter valued at $968,000. 83.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sysco Company Profile

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.

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