Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) Holdings Boosted by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY - Free Report) by 29.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 32,084 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 7,320 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Sysco were worth $2,453,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SYY. Fortem Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Sysco by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Fortem Financial Group LLC now owns 3,875 shares of the company's stock valued at $296,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Sysco by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,913 shares of the company's stock valued at $383,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Sysco by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC now owns 4,049 shares of the company's stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group lifted its stake in Sysco by 1.1% during the second quarter. Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group now owns 17,045 shares of the company's stock worth $1,217,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Finally, L.M. Kohn & Company boosted its holdings in Sysco by 2.4% in the third quarter. L.M. Kohn & Company now owns 7,739 shares of the company's stock worth $604,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.41% of the company's stock.

Sysco Price Performance

Shares of Sysco stock traded down $0.21 on Monday, hitting $73.02. The company had a trading volume of 3,555,637 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,913,882. Sysco Co. has a 52 week low of $69.03 and a 52 week high of $82.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company has a market cap of $35.87 billion, a PE ratio of 18.77, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.18. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $76.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.85.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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). Sysco had a net margin of 2.44% and a return on equity of 101.04%. The firm had revenue of $20.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.07 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Sysco Co. will post 4.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. Sysco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on SYY shares. Melius Research raised shares of Sysco to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Melius started coverage on Sysco in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. They set a "hold" rating and a $85.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com raised Sysco from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $85.93.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sysco

In related news, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 21,844 shares of Sysco stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $1,747,520.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 60,581 shares in the company, valued at $4,846,480. The trade was a 26.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 4,036 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.10, for a total value of $303,103.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 48,451 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,638,670.10. This represents a 7.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 83,306 shares of company stock valued at $6,485,050. 0.54% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.