Clearline Capital LP Invests $1.64 Million in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Clearline Capital LP purchased a new position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 21,000 shares of the coffee company's stock, valued at approximately $1,635,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SBUX. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in Starbucks by 96.3% in the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 5,213 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $508,000 after purchasing an additional 2,558 shares in the last quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC now owns 10,201 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $979,000 after buying an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 12.2% in the fourth quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,837 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $272,000 after buying an additional 309 shares in the last quarter. Partners Capital Investment Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 53.7% in the fourth quarter. Partners Capital Investment Group LLP now owns 3,541 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $340,000 after buying an additional 1,237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Starbucks by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,032 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SBUX. Evercore ISI raised shares of Starbucks from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Starbucks from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $85.00 to $118.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Starbucks from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Starbucks presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $100.52.

Starbucks Stock Performance

NASDAQ SBUX traded down $0.11 on Friday, reaching $97.36. The stock had a trading volume of 6,320,017 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,885,989. Starbucks Co. has a 12-month low of $71.55 and a 12-month high of $107.66. The business's 50-day moving average price is $88.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $84.15. The stock has a market cap of $110.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.96.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The coffee company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.93. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 49.38% and a net margin of 11.16%. The company had revenue of $9.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.25 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.00 earnings per share. Starbucks's revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Starbucks news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp bought 380 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 36,242 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,316,143. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp acquired 380 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 36,242 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,316,143. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.03, for a total transaction of $305,597.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 75,054 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,057,327.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

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.