Wright Investors Service Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Wright Investors Service Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY - Free Report) by 25.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,759 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,417 shares during the period. Wright Investors Service Inc.'s holdings in Sysco were worth $1,893,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. National Pension Service boosted its holdings in Sysco by 15.6% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,237,017 shares of the company's stock worth $96,562,000 after acquiring an additional 166,798 shares in the last quarter. New England Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Sysco by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. New England Asset Management Inc. now owns 131,360 shares of the company's stock worth $10,254,000 after purchasing an additional 14,810 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in Sysco by 29.0% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 78,333 shares of the company's stock worth $6,115,000 after purchasing an additional 17,587 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Sysco by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,685,547 shares of the company's stock valued at $521,874,000 after purchasing an additional 672,940 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Sysco by 7.7% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 124,341 shares of the company's stock worth $9,706,000 after buying an additional 8,891 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.41% of the company's stock.

Sysco Price Performance

Shares of Sysco stock traded up $0.27 on Tuesday, hitting $73.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,306,181 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,028,323. The company has a market capitalization of $36.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.18. Sysco Co. has a 1 year low of $69.03 and a 1 year high of $82.89. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $76.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $75.76. 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 (NYSE:SYY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.13 by ($0.04). Sysco had a net margin of 2.44% and a return on equity of 101.04%. The firm had revenue of $20.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.07 EPS. Sysco's revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sysco Co. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.76%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. Sysco's dividend payout ratio is currently 52.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SYY shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Melius Research raised Sysco to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Melius began coverage on Sysco in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $85.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Sysco from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sysco currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $85.93.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total value of $216,427.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,955 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $966,831.65. This represents a 18.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 21,844 shares of Sysco stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $1,747,520.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 60,581 shares in the company, valued at $4,846,480. This trade represents a 26.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 83,306 shares of company stock worth $6,485,050 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Sysco Company Profile

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.