Advertisement
Canada markets close in 1 minute
  • S&P/TSX

    21,876.09
    -135.63 (-0.62%)
     
  • S&P 500

    5,072.32
    +1.77 (+0.03%)
     
  • DOW

    38,470.61
    -33.08 (-0.09%)
     
  • CAD/USD

    0.7301
    -0.0019 (-0.26%)
     
  • CRUDE OIL

    82.91
    -0.45 (-0.54%)
     
  • Bitcoin CAD

    87,820.28
    -3,235.12 (-3.55%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    1,390.88
    -33.22 (-2.33%)
     
  • GOLD FUTURES

    2,331.60
    -10.50 (-0.45%)
     
  • RUSSELL 2000

    1,993.63
    -9.02 (-0.45%)
     
  • 10-Yr Bond

    4.6520
    +0.0540 (+1.17%)
     
  • NASDAQ

    15,716.08
    +19.44 (+0.12%)
     
  • VOLATILITY

    15.68
    -0.01 (-0.06%)
     
  • FTSE

    8,040.38
    -4.43 (-0.06%)
     
  • NIKKEI 225

    38,460.08
    +907.92 (+2.42%)
     
  • CAD/EUR

    0.6818
    -0.0018 (-0.26%)
     

What Kind Of Investor Owns Most Of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX)?

Want to participate in a short research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card!

The big shareholder groups in Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) have power over the company. Generally speaking, as a company grows, institutions will increase their ownership. Conversely, insiders often decrease their ownership over time. Companies that used to be publicly owned tend to have lower insider ownership.

Starbucks is a pretty big company. It has a market capitalization of US$103b. Normally institutions would own a significant portion of a company this size. In the chart below below, we can see that institutions own shares in the company. We can zoom in on the different ownership groups, to learn more about SBUX.

ADVERTISEMENT

View our latest analysis for Starbucks

NasdaqGS:SBUX Ownership Summary, June 21st 2019
NasdaqGS:SBUX Ownership Summary, June 21st 2019

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Starbucks?

Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index.

As you can see, institutional investors own 75% of Starbucks. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone, since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Starbucks's historic earnings and revenue, below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story.

NasdaqGS:SBUX Income Statement, June 21st 2019
NasdaqGS:SBUX Income Statement, June 21st 2019

Since institutional investors own more than half the issued stock, the board will likely have to pay attention to their preferences. Hedge funds don't have many shares in Starbucks. There are plenty of analysts covering the stock, so it might be worth seeing what they are forecasting, too.

Insider Ownership Of Starbucks

The definition of company insiders can be subjective, and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. The company management answer to the board; and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board, themselves.

I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.

Our most recent data indicates that insiders own some shares in Starbucks Corporation. Insiders own US$3.2b worth of shares (at current prices). Most would say this shows a good alignment of interests between shareholders and the board. Still, it might be worth checking if those insiders have been selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 22% ownership, the general public have some degree of sway over SBUX. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies.

Next Steps:

It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Starbucks better, we need to consider many other factors.

I always like to check for a history of revenue growth. You can too, by accessing this free chart of historic revenue and earnings in this detailed graph.

If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its future.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.