Ieq Capital LLC Acquires Shares of 19,535 Starbucks Corporation $SBUX

Ieq Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 19,535 shares of the coffee company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,996,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Rachor Investment Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Starbucks during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new position in Starbucks in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Phillip James Consulting Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Starbucks during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Starbucks News

Here are the key news stories impacting Starbucks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Seasonal promotions are supporting the turnaround. Starbucks launched its fall menu and Pumpkin Spice Latte season, while the limited-time Unicorn Frappuccino reportedly generated the company’s highest sales weekend on record and lifted traffic 28.5% above a typical Saturday. New offerings, including the Blueberry Matcha Daily Fiber Bar, are also intended to drive visits and strengthen the “Back to Starbucks” strategy. Starbucks Unicorn Frappuccino drives biggest sales weekend ever
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains constructive. Baird initiated coverage with an Outperform rating and a $124 price target, implying additional upside based on expectations for improved traffic, margin recovery and continued execution of the turnaround. Starbucks has also reported better-than-expected recent earnings and maintained fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of $2.55–$2.65. Baird sees upside for Starbucks
• Neutral Sentiment: Corporate restructuring continues. Starbucks plans to eliminate more than 200 Seattle-area corporate positions and shift some roles to Nashville. The cuts could reduce costs and streamline operations, but they also highlight ongoing execution challenges and may create transition or morale risks. Starbucks is cutting more than 200 jobs
• Negative Sentiment: Labor conflict is the main near-term overhang. Starbucks Workers United is urging more than 12,000 unionized baristas and customers to boycott the chain during the Pumpkin Spice Latte launch until management reaches a contract agreement. The financial impact depends on participation, but a sustained boycott could undermine the traffic gains investors are watching and add reputational and labor costs. Starbucks union calls for boycott

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SBUX shares. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price target on Starbucks from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Scotiabank downgraded shares of Starbucks from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Needham & Company LLC set a $120.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Melius Research set a $110.00 price target on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Compass Point initiated coverage on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Starbucks has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $110.30.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Starbucks news, CEO Brady Brewer sold 2,229 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.99, for a total transaction of $236,251.71. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 75,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,963,558.65. The trade was a 2.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 6,687 shares of company stock worth $681,663. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Starbucks Stock Down 1.6%

SBUX stock opened at $105.76 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $120.57 billion, a PE ratio of 60.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.97. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $104.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $100.59. Starbucks Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $77.99 and a fifty-two week high of $110.51.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The coffee company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.19. Starbucks had a net margin of 5.17% and a negative return on equity of 34.10%. The firm had revenue of $9.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.50 EPS. Starbucks’s revenue was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.550-2.650 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Starbucks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Starbucks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 142.53%.

Starbucks Profile

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.