Iowa State Bank Sells 290 Shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Iowa State Bank cut its holdings in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 20,766 shares of the company’s stock after selling 290 shares during the period. Iowa State Bank’s holdings in Sysco were worth $1,588,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Sysco Stock Performance

Shares of SYY stock traded down $0.41 on Monday, reaching $75.02. The stock had a trading volume of 632,261 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,318,943. The stock has a market cap of $36.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.18. 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 Co. 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 $77.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $75.72.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share (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 the consensus estimate of $20.47 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.07 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Sysco Co. will post 4.57 EPS for the current year.

Sysco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 52.44%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 21,844 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 60,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,846,480. This trade represents a 26.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total value of $216,427.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 12,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $966,831.65. The trade was a 18.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 83,306 shares of company stock valued at $6,485,050 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on SYY shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Sysco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Melius began coverage on shares of Sysco in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. They set a “hold” rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Melius Research raised shares of Sysco to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $85.93.

Sysco 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.