Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado Trims Stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado cut its stake in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,180,596 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 3,818 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $91,909,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vima LLC purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in Starbucks in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new position in Starbucks during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Starbucks by 498.2% during the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 335 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. 72.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SBUX. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Starbucks from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $81.00 to $110.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. DZ Bank cut Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $85.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Stifel Nicolaus raised Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $80.00 to $110.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Starbucks from $84.00 to $80.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Baird R W upgraded Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Starbucks has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.08.

Insider Activity

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

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SBUX opened at $96.90 on Friday. Starbucks Co. has a 52-week low of $71.55 and a 52-week high of $107.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $109.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.69, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.96. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $86.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $84.07.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The coffee company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.93. Starbucks had a net margin of 11.16% and a negative return on equity of 49.38%. The company had revenue of $9.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.00 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Starbucks Co. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Company 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.