Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) Shares Bought by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) by 1,491.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,808,571 shares of the coffee company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,632,087 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 0.25% of Starbucks worth $256,282,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Starbucks during the second quarter valued at $25,000. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its position in Starbucks by 39.4% in the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 428 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Starbucks during the third quarter valued at $49,000. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 3rd quarter valued at about $50,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the third quarter worth $71,000. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,452 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.07, for a total transaction of $143,849.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 65,648 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,503,747.36. The trade was a 2.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.98% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Starbucks Price Performance

Shares of SBUX stock traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $93.15. The stock had a trading volume of 1,392,431 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,265,712. Starbucks Co. has a 12-month low of $71.55 and a 12-month high of $103.32. The firm's 50-day moving average is $95.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $105.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.99.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.80. Starbucks had a net margin of 10.40% and a negative return on equity of 46.39%. The company had revenue of $9.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.06 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 3.11 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Starbucks's payout ratio is 73.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on SBUX shares. Wedbush dropped their price objective on Starbucks from $98.00 to $95.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. BTIG Research boosted their price target on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Starbucks from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $103.77.

About Starbucks

Starbucks Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a roaster, marketer, and retailer of coffee worldwide. The company operates through three segments: North America, International, and Channel Development. Its stores offer coffee and tea beverages, roasted whole beans and ground coffees, single serve products, and ready-to-drink beverages; and various food products, such as pastries, breakfast sandwiches, and lunch items.