Monarch Capital Management Inc. Lowers Holdings in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Monarch Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 60,273 shares of the company’s stock after selling 403 shares during the quarter. Sysco comprises about 1.3% of Monarch Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Monarch Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Sysco were worth $4,608,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Sysco by 1,240.0% during the third quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 335 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Sysco during the third quarter worth $26,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. acquired a new position in Sysco during the third quarter worth $31,000. Focused Wealth Management Inc acquired a new stake in Sysco in the third quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in Sysco in the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.41% of the company’s stock.

Sysco Stock Performance

NYSE:SYY opened at $73.02 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $76.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $75.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38. Sysco Co. has a twelve month low of $69.03 and a twelve month high of $82.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.77, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.18.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.13 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $20.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.47 billion. Sysco had a return on equity of 101.04% and a net margin of 2.44%. Sysco’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.07 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Sysco Co. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.79%. Sysco’s payout ratio is currently 52.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on SYY shares. StockNews.com upgraded Sysco from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Melius initiated coverage on shares of Sysco in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. They set a “hold” rating and a $85.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Melius Research raised shares of Sysco to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $85.93.

Insider Activity

In other Sysco news, SVP Eve M. Mcfadden sold 4,036 shares of Sysco stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.10, for a total transaction of $303,103.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 48,451 shares in the company, valued at $3,638,670.10. The trade was a 7.69 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total value of $216,427.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,955 shares in the company, valued at approximately $966,831.65. The trade was a 18.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 83,306 shares of company stock worth $6,485,050. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sysco Company Profile

Sysco Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. It operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments.