Barclays PLC Buys 517,219 Shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY - Free Report) by 43.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,715,356 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 517,219 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.35% of Sysco worth $133,902,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geller Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Sysco by 14.2% during the third quarter. Geller Advisors LLC now owns 8,946 shares of the company's stock worth $698,000 after purchasing an additional 1,111 shares in the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its position in shares of Sysco by 0.6% during the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 31,949 shares of the company's stock worth $2,494,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Sysco by 8.4% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 715,378 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,842,000 after buying an additional 55,691 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Sysco in the third quarter valued at approximately $368,000. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in Sysco by 17.8% in the third quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 42,489 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,317,000 after buying an additional 6,433 shares during the period. 83.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sysco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SYY traded down $0.47 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $80.35. 2,101,119 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,162,392. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $76.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $75.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.19. Sysco Co. has a twelve month low of $69.03 and a twelve month high of $82.89.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.13 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $20.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.47 billion. Sysco had a return on equity of 101.04% and a net margin of 2.44%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.07 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Sysco Co. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Sysco Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. Sysco's dividend payout ratio is presently 52.44%.

Insider Transactions at Sysco

In other Sysco news, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total value of $216,427.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,955 shares of the company's stock, valued at $966,831.65. This trade represents a 18.29 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 21,844 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $1,747,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 60,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,846,480. This represents a 26.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 35,279 shares of company stock worth $2,786,971. 0.54% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Sysco from $91.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sysco from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $85.77.

Sysco 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.