World Investment Advisors Sells 7,392 Shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

World Investment Advisors decreased its position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX - Free Report) by 10.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 63,900 shares of the coffee company's stock after selling 7,392 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors' holdings in Starbucks were worth $5,831,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SBUX. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Starbucks by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 111,106,209 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $10,138,442,000 after purchasing an additional 784,432 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in Starbucks by 1.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 45,974,407 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $4,482,045,000 after buying an additional 437,218 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Starbucks by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,826,001 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $2,259,516,000 after buying an additional 548,245 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,868,817 shares of the coffee company's stock worth $1,448,030,000 after acquiring an additional 718,880 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,244,812,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on Starbucks from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a report on Friday, January 24th. Robert W. Baird reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $85.00 target price (down from $114.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Monday. Wedbush boosted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Starbucks from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Starbucks has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $105.12.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SBUX traded up $8.99 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $88.68. 26,656,509 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,425,307. The company has a market cap of $100.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.61, a PEG ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 1.00. Starbucks Co. has a twelve month low of $71.55 and a twelve month high of $117.46. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $103.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $98.92.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.01. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 44.97% and a net margin of 9.73%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.90 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Starbucks's dividend payout ratio is currently 78.71%.

Starbucks Profile

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.