Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on SBUX. Bank of America boosted their price target on Starbucks from $106.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $100.00 price objective on shares of Starbucks and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Starbucks from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $110.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and set a $84.00 price target on shares of Starbucks in a report on Monday, December 1st. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $104.04.

Starbucks Price Performance

Shares of SBUX traded down $1.74 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $93.43. 8,423,116 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,541,767. Starbucks has a twelve month low of $75.50 and a twelve month high of $117.46. The company has a market capitalization of $106.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.07, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.97. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $87.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $87.12.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.59 by ($0.03). Starbucks had a negative return on equity of 31.32% and a net margin of 4.99%.The firm had revenue of $9.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.62 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.69 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.150-2.400 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Starbucks will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jorgen Vig Knudstorp acquired 11,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $85.00 per share, with a total value of $994,500.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 53,096 shares in the company, valued at $4,513,160. The trade was a 28.26% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Starbucks

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. PUREfi Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Starbucks during the 2nd quarter worth about $286,000. Narwhal Capital Management boosted its stake in Starbucks by 39.6% in the second quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 32,738 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $3,000,000 after acquiring an additional 9,282 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of Starbucks by 3.2% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 433,112 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $36,576,000 after purchasing an additional 13,262 shares during the period. Morningstar Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Starbucks during the 2nd quarter worth about $653,000. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Starbucks by 3.1% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 548,768 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $46,426,000 after purchasing an additional 16,428 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Starbucks

Here are the key news stories impacting Starbucks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue and traffic momentum — Starbucks reported revenue of $9.92B and its first U.S. comparable-transaction growth in two years, signaling the “Back to Starbucks” turnaround is gaining traction; that beat helped lift the stock after the print. Starbucks Gets a Jolt After Earnings, But Will the Buzz Last?
• Positive Sentiment: New loyalty program — Starbucks unveiled a tiered Starbucks Rewards rollout (Green/Gold/Reserve) to launch March 10, intended to drive frequency and personalization — a structural revenue-growth lever. Starbucks Unveils Reimagined Loyalty Program
• Positive Sentiment: Investor Day execution — management (COO Mike Grams, CEO Brian Niccol) presented store redesigns and digital/operational changes aimed at sustaining traffic and ticket gains, reinforcing the narrative that the turnaround is progressing. Starbucks says it has cracked its comeback
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst activity mixed — some firms (BTIG) reiterated bullish targets while others (UBS, Zacks) are cautious or neutral, reflecting debate over whether upside in comps will translate to margin/cash‑flow recovery. BTIG reaffirmed buy / price target
• Neutral Sentiment: Consumer demand comment — CEO Niccol said observed in-store behavior (across cohorts) looks stronger than headline consumer-confidence metrics, which supports the case for continued traffic resilience. Starbucks CEO: Consumer confidence isn’t matching the behavior we’re seeing
• Negative Sentiment: EPS miss & margin pressure — EPS of $0.56 missed estimates and management flagged continued margin headwinds (higher input/labor costs), which tempers enthusiasm despite revenue gains and keeps near-term profitability uncertain. Starbucks (SBUX) Misses Q1 Earnings Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Governance & legal distractions — shareholder counsel has opened an investigation into directors and a securities class action exists; separately, lifting the cap on CEO private-jet use drew negative headlines — both increase reputational/governance risk. Johnson Fistel legal investigation Starbucks removes cap on CEO’s jet use

Starbucks Company Profile

Starbucks Corporation is a global coffeehouse chain and roaster that operates, licenses and franchises coffee shops and related retail businesses. Founded in Seattle, Washington in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl and Gordon Bowker, the company grew from a single store focused on whole-bean coffee and equipment into a broad consumer-facing brand. Howard Schultz, who joined the company later and served in senior leadership roles, is widely credited with transforming Starbucks into a mass-market specialty coffee retailer and expanding its footprint internationally.

Starbucks’ core activities center on the retail sale of hot and cold specialty beverages, whole-bean and packaged coffees, teas and ready-to-drink products, along with complementary food items and merchandise such as mugs and brewing equipment.