Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC Sells 5,537 Shares of Starbucks Corporation $SBUX

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC decreased its stake in shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 161,724 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 5,537 shares during the quarter. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $13,619,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Collier Financial bought a new position in Starbucks during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Rachor Investment Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new position in Starbucks during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new position in Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Tucker Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on SBUX shares. UBS Group lowered shares of Starbucks from a “neutral” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, March 9th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Starbucks from an “overweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Starbucks from a “neutral” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. They set an “underperform” rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $107.48.

Insider Buying and Selling at Starbucks

In related news, EVP Sara Kelly sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $210,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 57,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,053,565. This trade represents a 3.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Brady Brewer sold 2,229 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.81, for a total transaction of $233,621.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 81,559 shares in the company, valued at $8,548,198.79. This represents a 2.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 7,046 shares of company stock worth $708,911. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of SBUX opened at $94.14 on Friday. Starbucks Corporation has a twelve month low of $77.99 and a twelve month high of $108.88. The company has a market cap of $107.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 71.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.98. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $99.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $94.09.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The coffee company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.06. Starbucks had a net margin of 3.89% and a negative return on equity of 29.24%. The business had revenue of $9.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.41 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.250-2.450 EPS. Analysts predict that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is currently 187.88%.

About Starbucks

Starbucks Corporation is a global coffeehouse chain and roaster that operates, licenses and franchises coffee shops and related retail businesses. Founded in Seattle, Washington in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl and Gordon Bowker, the company grew from a single store focused on whole-bean coffee and equipment into a broad consumer-facing brand. Howard Schultz, who joined the company later and served in senior leadership roles, is widely credited with transforming Starbucks into a mass-market specialty coffee retailer and expanding its footprint internationally.

Starbucks’ core activities center on the retail sale of hot and cold specialty beverages, whole-bean and packaged coffees, teas and ready-to-drink products, along with complementary food items and merchandise such as mugs and brewing equipment.