Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 15.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 126,312 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 22,452 shares during the quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $9,833,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Starbucks during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Vima LLC acquired a new position in Starbucks during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Starbucks in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Fairman Group LLC acquired a new stake in Starbucks in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Starbucks by 150.0% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 330 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of Starbucks stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.03, for a total value of $305,597.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 75,054 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,057,327.62. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Rachel Ruggeri sold 3,290 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.16, for a total transaction of $299,916.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 62,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,697,682.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Aaron Conway sold 3,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.03, for a total value of $305,597.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 75,054 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,057,327.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.98% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on SBUX shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Starbucks from $84.00 to $80.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. DZ Bank downgraded shares of Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $85.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $98.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Baird R W upgraded Starbucks from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Starbucks from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.08.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SBUX opened at $96.05 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $108.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.46, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.96. Starbucks Co. has a 1 year low of $71.55 and a 1 year high of $107.66. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $86.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $83.99.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93. Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 49.38% and a net margin of 11.16%. The company had revenue of $9.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. Starbucks’s quarterly revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Starbucks Co. will post 3.56 EPS for the current year.

Starbucks 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.