Hsbc Holdings PLC Boosts Stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,905,602 shares of the coffee company's stock after purchasing an additional 147,376 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned 0.26% of Starbucks worth $264,912,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SBUX. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Starbucks by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 111,106,209 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $10,138,442,000 after purchasing an additional 784,432 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 20.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 54,924,230 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $5,011,796,000 after purchasing an additional 9,174,682 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Starbucks by 27.0% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 25,128,649 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $2,292,989,000 after acquiring an additional 5,348,790 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Starbucks by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,826,001 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $2,259,516,000 after purchasing an additional 548,245 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Starbucks by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,868,817 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $1,448,030,000 after acquiring an additional 718,880 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on SBUX. Baird R W downgraded Starbucks from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Wedbush upped their price objective on Starbucks from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $85.00 price objective (down from $114.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday, April 7th. Barclays cut their price objective on Starbucks from $124.00 to $106.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Starbucks from $114.00 to $103.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $103.00.

Starbucks Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of SBUX traded up $1.05 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $83.86. The company had a trading volume of 6,791,606 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,506,738. The stock has a market cap of $95.26 billion, a PE ratio of 27.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 1.00. Starbucks Co. has a 1-year low of $71.55 and a 1-year high of $117.46. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $96.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $97.87.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.01. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 44.97% and a net margin of 9.73%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.90 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Starbucks's payout ratio is currently 78.71%.

Starbucks Company Profile

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.