Waycross Partners LLC Purchases 4,565 Shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY)

Waycross Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Sysco Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 131,701 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,565 shares during the period. Sysco makes up 1.8% of Waycross Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Waycross Partners LLC’s holdings in Sysco were worth $9,631,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of SYY. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its holdings in Sysco by 74.0% in the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 374 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Sysco by 74.6% during the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 419 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in Sysco during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sysco in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Milestone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sysco in the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. 83.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sysco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SYY traded down $2.90 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $74.32. 7,972,734 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,948,538. The stock has a market cap of $37.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.17, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $79.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $75.11. Sysco Co. has a twelve month low of $62.24 and a twelve month high of $82.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.00.

Sysco (NYSE:SYY) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.01. Sysco had a return on equity of 105.22% and a net margin of 2.69%. The business had revenue of $19.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.32 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.80 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Sysco Co. will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Sysco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Investors of record on Friday, July 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This is an increase from Sysco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. Sysco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.90%.

Insider Transactions at Sysco

In other news, CAO Neil Russell sold 1,722 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $137,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,082 shares in the company, valued at $1,926,560. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SYY has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Sysco from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. StockNews.com cut shares of Sysco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Sysco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Sysco from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.38.

About Sysco

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.