Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) Shares Sold by Appleton Partners Inc. MA

Appleton Partners Inc. MA decreased its position in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 3.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,115 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,018 shares during the quarter. Appleton Partners Inc. MA’s holdings in Sysco were worth $2,120,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYY. Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in Sysco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $683,599,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Sysco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $450,794,000. Capital Research Global Investors acquired a new stake in Sysco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $227,241,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in Sysco by 132.9% during the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 3,653,446 shares of the company’s stock worth $267,177,000 after purchasing an additional 2,084,501 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Management Inc. WI raised its holdings in Sysco by 92.1% during the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI now owns 2,619,940 shares of the company’s stock worth $191,596,000 after purchasing an additional 1,255,908 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.41% of the company’s stock.

Sysco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SYY opened at $72.68 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.73, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.17. Sysco Co. has a one year low of $62.24 and a one year high of $82.89. The company’s fifty day moving average is $74.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $76.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.34.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.01. Sysco had a net margin of 2.66% and a return on equity of 99.88%. The firm had revenue of $19.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.90 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Sysco Co. will post 4.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 5th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.81%. This is an increase from Sysco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on SYY. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Sysco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Sysco from $84.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Sysco from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Sysco from $87.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, Guggenheim upgraded shares of Sysco from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.10.

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.