Albion Financial Group UT Sells 18,033 Shares of Starbucks Corporation $SBUX

Albion Financial Group UT lessened its holdings in shares of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) by 12.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 131,022 shares of the coffee company’s stock after selling 18,033 shares during the quarter. Albion Financial Group UT’s holdings in Starbucks were worth $11,033,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in Starbucks by 3.2% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 433,112 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $36,576,000 after buying an additional 13,262 shares during the last quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Starbucks during the third quarter worth about $6,099,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Starbucks by 3.1% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 548,768 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $46,426,000 after buying an additional 16,428 shares during the last quarter. Allstate Corp purchased a new stake in Starbucks during the third quarter worth about $3,491,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Starbucks by 0.5% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 113,438,902 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $9,596,931,000 after buying an additional 577,279 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Starbucks news, EVP Sara Kelly sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.12, for a total transaction of $242,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 59,609 shares in the company, valued at $5,789,226.08. This trade represents a 4.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brady Brewer sold 1,641 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.12, for a total transaction of $159,373.92. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 86,605 shares in the company, valued at $8,411,077.60. The trade was a 1.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 4,729 shares of company stock worth $460,974 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Starbucks Price Performance

Shares of SBUX opened at $94.78 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $95.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $89.11. The company has a market capitalization of $107.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 78.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.95. Starbucks Corporation has a 1-year low of $75.50 and a 1-year high of $104.82.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $9.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.62 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 3.63% and a negative return on equity of 28.66%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.150-2.400 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Starbucks News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Starbucks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Starbucks formalized a joint venture with Boyu Capital in China and is shifting to a licensed model to scale faster toward a 20,000-store opportunity — a move that reduces capital intensity and leverages local partners to accelerate growth in the world’s largest coffee market. Starbucks & Boyu JV in China: A Strategic Bet to Accelerate Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: Management cut menu complexity by ~25% to improve speed of service, simplify operations and protect margins — a tactical step that supports the “Back to Starbucks” turnaround by improving throughput and customer experience. Starbucks Cuts Menu Complexity by 25%: Smart Simplification Move?
• Positive Sentiment: New U.S. partner compensation changes — an incentive rewards program tied to store performance, expanded tipping options, and a shift to weekly pay — are being viewed as retention and service-quality levers that could stabilize traffic and margins over time. Investors are treating this as a near-term operational catalyst. Starbucks rises as investors weigh new U.S. barista incentive plan and pay changes
• Positive Sentiment: Product innovation — new lower‑sugar “Energy Refreshers” and other beverage updates — is generating buzz and may help traffic/market positioning with health-conscious consumers. “Caffeine From Nature”: Starbucks Stock (NASDAQ:SBUX) Blasts Up on Energy Refreshers
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street remains generally favorable — multiple recent buy/overweight ratings and a median price target near $103 provide analyst support, but targets vary considerably. Analyst ratings and price targets summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider and institutional flows are mixed — some large institutional reductions were reported alongside other sizable buys, leaving ownership dynamics unclear as a near-term directional signal. Hedge fund & insider activity
• Negative Sentiment: Fundamental headwinds remain: the last quarterly report showed an EPS miss and thin net margins, and the stock trades at a high P/E, which raises sensitivity to execution and margin pulses as Starbucks scales new initiatives. (See company filings and recent earnings commentary for details.)

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on SBUX shares. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Starbucks to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. William Blair raised shares of Starbucks from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Starbucks from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.07.

About Starbucks

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.