Franklin Resources Inc. Increases Holdings in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 572,158 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 73,306 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.12% of Sysco worth $43,038,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SYY. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. grew its position 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 purchased a new position in Sysco during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new position in Sysco during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Focused Wealth Management Inc purchased a new position in Sysco during the third quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in Sysco during the second quarter worth about $38,000. 83.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sysco Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE SYY opened at $78.03 on Wednesday. Sysco Co. has a 1-year low of $69.03 and a 1-year high of $82.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.38. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $76.55 and a 200-day moving average of $75.30. The firm has a market cap of $38.33 billion, a PE ratio of 20.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.19.

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

Sysco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.44%.

Insider Transactions at Sysco

In other Sysco news, EVP Greg D. Bertrand sold 21,844 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $1,747,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 60,581 shares in the company, valued at $4,846,480. This trade represents a 26.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Sheila Talton sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.63, for a total value of $216,427.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,955 shares in the company, valued at $966,831.65. This trade represents a 18.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 35,279 shares of company stock worth $2,786,971. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on SYY shares. StockNews.com cut Sysco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Sysco from $87.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Sysco from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Sysco from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $86.00.

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.