Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,444,016 shares of the coffee company's stock after selling 50,992 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.22% of Starbucks worth $238,267,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SBUX. Dakota Wealth Management increased its holdings in Starbucks by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 55,793 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $5,439,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Weil Company Inc. grew its position in shares of Starbucks by 31.2% during the third quarter. Weil Company Inc. now owns 34,580 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $3,371,000 after buying an additional 8,222 shares in the last quarter. Maia Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 69.1% during the third quarter. Maia Wealth LLC now owns 18,582 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $1,805,000 after buying an additional 7,596 shares during the period. Aljian Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Starbucks by 48.5% in the third quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC now owns 30,422 shares of the coffee company's stock valued at $2,966,000 after acquiring an additional 9,936 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Investment Management Corp of Ontario lifted its stake in Starbucks by 48.6% in the third quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 37,584 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $3,664,000 after acquiring an additional 12,300 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Redburn Atlantic reissued a "sell" rating and issued a $77.00 price objective (down from $84.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Starbucks from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. BTIG Research lifted their price target on Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Starbucks from $96.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $103.77.

Insider Transactions at Starbucks

In related news, CFO Rachel Ruggeri sold 1,491 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.54, for a total value of $148,414.14. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 80,124 shares in the company, valued at $7,975,542.96. The trade was a 1.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

Starbucks Stock Performance

SBUX traded down $0.79 during trading on Friday, hitting $87.97. The stock had a trading volume of 26,374,512 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,882,215. Starbucks Co. has a twelve month low of $71.55 and a twelve month high of $103.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.58, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.97. The company's 50-day moving average price is $97.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $89.79.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The coffee company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.80. Starbucks had a net margin of 10.40% and a negative return on equity of 46.39%. The firm had revenue of $9.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.06 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Starbucks Co. will post 3.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.77%. Starbucks's payout ratio is 73.72%.

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.