RAM Investment Partners LLC Takes $203,000 Position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

RAM Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 2,085 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SBUX. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 0.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 108,403,768 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $9,907,020,000 after acquiring an additional 470,498 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in Starbucks by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,720,903 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $678,923,000 after purchasing an additional 221,718 shares in the last quarter. Flossbach Von Storch AG lifted its holdings in Starbucks by 106.7% during the 1st quarter. Flossbach Von Storch AG now owns 5,612,687 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $512,943,000 after purchasing an additional 2,897,282 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Starbucks by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,412,603 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $495,145,000 after buying an additional 266,570 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board bought a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the first quarter valued at about $415,167,000. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of SBUX stock opened at $97.65 on Thursday. Starbucks Co. has a fifty-two week low of $71.55 and a fifty-two week high of $107.66. The company has a market capitalization of $110.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.90, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.97. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $95.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $84.89.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $9.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.25 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 11.16% and a negative return on equity of 49.38%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.61 per share. This is a positive change from Starbucks’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.50%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.81%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SBUX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $85.00 to $118.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Starbucks from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. BTIG Research upped their price target on shares of Starbucks from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. DZ Bank cut Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $85.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Starbucks from $93.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.48.

Insider Transactions at Starbucks

In other Starbucks news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp bought 380 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $91.50 per share, for a total transaction of $34,770.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 36,242 shares in the company, valued at $3,316,143. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Starbucks news, CEO Rachel Ruggeri sold 3,290 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.16, for a total transaction of $299,916.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 62,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,697,682.32. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp bought 380 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $91.50 per share, with a total value of $34,770.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,242 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,316,143. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

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.