Virtu Financial LLC Makes New $1.28 Million Investment in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 14,069 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,284,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 45,974,407 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $4,482,045,000 after purchasing an additional 437,218 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,277,756 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $2,358,464,000 after purchasing an additional 333,004 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 55.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,779,859 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,928,339,000 after purchasing an additional 7,015,375 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 100.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,149,937 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,476,967,000 after purchasing an additional 7,598,146 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 11,916,777 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $1,087,406,000 after purchasing an additional 154,093 shares during the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Starbucks Stock Down 2.2 %

NASDAQ SBUX opened at $97.07 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $110.26 billion, a PE ratio of 31.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $105.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $99.41. Starbucks Co. has a 12-month low of $71.55 and a 12-month high of $117.46.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.01. Starbucks had a net margin of 9.73% and a negative return on equity of 44.97%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.90 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on SBUX shares. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Wedbush lifted 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. Argus raised shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Starbucks from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Starbucks currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $106.12.

About Starbucks

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.