GF Fund Management CO. LTD. Purchases Shares of 214,880 Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX)

GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks Co. (NASDAQ:SBUX) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 214,880 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,608,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,244,812,000. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 20.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 54,924,230 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $5,011,796,000 after buying an additional 9,174,682 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 27.0% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 25,128,649 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $2,292,989,000 after buying an additional 5,348,790 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 167.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,690,198 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $519,230,000 after buying an additional 3,563,942 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Starbucks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $284,283,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on SBUX shares. Wedbush lifted their price target on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Starbucks from $88.00 to $84.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Starbucks from $115.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Guggenheim lowered their price target on shares of Starbucks from $95.00 to $83.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Starbucks from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Starbucks has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.72.

Starbucks Stock Up 0.5%

SBUX opened at $84.40 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $95.91 billion, a PE ratio of 27.23, a P/E/G ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.99. Starbucks Co. has a 52 week low of $71.55 and a 52 week high of $117.46. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $86.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $96.04.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The coffee company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $8.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.90 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 9.73% and a negative return on equity of 44.97%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.68 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Starbucks Co. will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $0.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio is presently 88.41%.

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.