Sysco (NYSE:SYY) Lowered to Buy Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Sysco (NYSE:SYY - Free Report) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Wednesday.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on SYY. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sysco has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $85.93.

Sysco Stock Performance

NYSE:SYY traded down $0.95 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $77.08. 3,057,893 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,149,228. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38. Sysco has a 1 year low of $69.03 and a 1 year high of $82.89. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.19.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.13 by ($0.04). Sysco had a net margin of 2.44% and a return on equity of 101.04%. The business had revenue of $20.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.07 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Sysco will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.65%. Sysco's dividend payout ratio is presently 52.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sysco news, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total transaction of $216,427.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 12,955 shares in the company, valued at $966,831.65. The trade was a 18.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 4,036 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.10, for a total transaction of $303,103.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 48,451 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,638,670.10. The trade was a 7.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 35,279 shares of company stock valued at $2,786,971. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sysco

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Focus Financial Network Inc. boosted its holdings in Sysco by 56.4% in the second quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 5,044 shares of the company's stock valued at $379,000 after purchasing an additional 1,818 shares during the last quarter. &PARTNERS bought a new stake in shares of Sysco in the second quarter worth $321,000. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP boosted its stake in Sysco by 9.0% during the 2nd quarter. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP now owns 23,995 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,713,000 after acquiring an additional 1,984 shares during the last quarter. Powers Advisory Group LLC increased its position in shares of Sysco by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Powers Advisory Group LLC now owns 9,555 shares of the company's stock worth $682,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everhart Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sysco by 45.8% in the 2nd quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,976 shares of the company's stock valued at $355,000 after purchasing an additional 1,563 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.41% 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.