Moors & Cabot Inc. Acquires 12,703 Shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY - Free Report) by 45.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,428 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 12,703 shares during the period. Moors & Cabot Inc.'s holdings in Sysco were worth $3,149,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. increased its holdings in Sysco by 1,240.0% during the 3rd quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 335 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sysco in the third quarter worth $26,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Sysco during the second quarter worth $25,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new position in Sysco during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Focused Wealth Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Sysco in the third quarter valued at about $37,000. 83.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sysco Price Performance

Shares of SYY opened at $73.63 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.26. Sysco Co. has a one year low of $69.03 and a one year high of $82.89. The stock's fifty day moving average is $75.74 and its 200-day moving average is $74.74.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY - Get Free Report) last released 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 firm 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%. Sysco's revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.07 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Sysco Co. will post 4.57 EPS for the current year.

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd will be given a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.77%. Sysco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on SYY shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Sysco from $91.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Sysco from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $85.77.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 4,036 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.10, for a total value of $303,103.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 48,451 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,638,670.10. The trade was a 7.69 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total value of $216,427.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,955 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $966,831.65. This trade represents a 18.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

About Sysco

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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