Fruth Investment Management reduced its position in SYSCO Co. (NYSE:SYY) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 62,680 shares of the company’s stock after selling 500 shares during the period. SYSCO comprises 1.3% of Fruth Investment Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Fruth Investment Management’s holdings in SYSCO were worth $2,569,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Eagle Asset Management boosted its position in SYSCO by 98.5% in the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management now owns 3,238,926 shares of the company’s stock valued at $126,220,000 after buying an additional 1,607,614 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management boosted its position in SYSCO by 342.3% in the fourth quarter. Acadian Asset Management now owns 1,415,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,053,000 after buying an additional 1,095,801 shares during the period. ING Groep boosted its position in SYSCO by 1,048.0% in the third quarter. ING Groep now owns 884,227 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,458,000 after buying an additional 807,207 shares during the period. Assetmark boosted its position in SYSCO by 207.8% in the third quarter. Assetmark now owns 199,365 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,769,000 after buying an additional 134,602 shares during the period. Finally, Creative Planning boosted its position in SYSCO by 139.9% in the fourth quarter. Creative Planning now owns 102,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,187,000 after buying an additional 59,550 shares during the period.

SYSCO Co. (NYSE:SYY) opened at 39.59 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $40.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.71. SYSCO Co. has a one year low of $35.45 and a one year high of $42.03. The company has a market capitalization of $22.35 billion and a P/E ratio of 36.25.

SYSCO (NYSE:SYY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.52. The business had revenue of $12.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.59 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.52 earnings per share. SYSCO’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that SYSCO Co. will post $1.93 EPS for the current year.

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, January 8th were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.13%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 6th.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on SYY shares. Jefferies Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $42.00 target price on shares of SYSCO in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Wells Fargo assumed coverage on SYSCO in a research note on Thursday, November 19th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $45.00 price target on the stock. Deutsche Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $40.00 price target on shares of SYSCO in a research note on Tuesday, December 8th. Goldman Sachs assumed coverage on SYSCO in a research note on Tuesday, December 15th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $37.00 price target on the stock. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $37.00 price target on shares of SYSCO in a research note on Thursday, January 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. SYSCO currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.08.

In related news, CFO Joel T. Grade sold 43,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.38, for a total transaction of $1,812,444.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 40,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,682,759.08. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO William J. Delaney III sold 16,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.09, for a total value of $661,549.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 406,472 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,701,934.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Sysco Corporation (NYSE:SYY) along with its subsidiaries and divisions, is a North American distributor of food and related products primarily to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry. The Company provides products and related services to approximately 425,000 customers, including restaurants, healthcare and educational facilities, lodging establishments and other foodservice customers. Sysco provides food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry. The Company has aggregated its operating companies into a number of segments, of which only Broadline and SYGMA are the main segments. Broadline operating companies distribute a line of food products and a variety of non-food products to their customers. SYGMA operating companies distribute a line of food products and a variety of non-food products to chain restaurant customer locations. The Company’s other segments include its specialty produce, custom-cut meat and lodging industry products segments.

12 Month Chart for NYSE:SYY

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