Sara Kelly Sells 2,500 Shares of Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) Stock

Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) EVP Sara Kelly sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.12, for a total value of $242,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 59,609 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,789,226.08. This trade represents a 4.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Starbucks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SBUX traded up $0.78 during trading on Monday, hitting $99.77. 9,372,640 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,650,715. Starbucks Corporation has a 1-year low of $75.50 and a 1-year high of $106.00. The company has a market capitalization of $113.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 82.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.93. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $93.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $87.87.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The coffee company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $9.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.62 billion. Starbucks had a net margin of 3.63% and a negative return on equity of 28.66%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.69 earnings per share. Starbucks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.150-2.400 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Starbucks Corporation will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Starbucks by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 114,410,675 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $9,634,523,000 after acquiring an additional 971,773 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of Starbucks by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 85,460,350 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $7,229,968,000 after purchasing an additional 8,774,198 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its position in shares of Starbucks by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 84,727,405 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $7,135,228,000 after buying an additional 7,007,268 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Starbucks by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 47,869,056 shares of the coffee company’s stock worth $4,031,053,000 after buying an additional 327,161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Starbucks by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 26,373,084 shares of the coffee company’s stock valued at $2,212,153,000 after acquiring an additional 225,168 shares during the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating and set a $89.00 price target (up from $84.00) on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Starbucks in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $95.00 price objective (up from $90.00) on shares of Starbucks in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of Starbucks in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $104.22.

Trending Headlines about Starbucks

Here are the key news stories impacting Starbucks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: New Nashville supply‑chain hub — Management’s opening of a supply‑chain and corporate hub in Nashville (with some Seattle staff relocation and local hiring) could lower distribution costs, improve store inventory flow and support new product rollouts, boosting margins over time. Starbucks’ New Nashville Supply Chain Hub Could Be A Game Changer For Starbucks (SBUX)
• Positive Sentiment: U.S. transactions rising — Zacks notes U.S. transactions increased for the first time in eight quarters, lifting comps and signaling improving customer traffic, which supports revenue recovery risk/reward. The Zacks Analyst Blog Starbucks, McDonald’s and Dutch Bros
• Neutral Sentiment: New coverage from DA Davidson — Additional analyst coverage can increase liquidity and attention but doesn’t signal a directional view by itself. Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) Research Coverage Started at DA Davidson
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation/price context — Recent commentary on whether the current share price is “fair” highlights mixed short‑term performance and that investors are reassessing long‑term growth vs. elevated multiples. Is Starbucks (SBUX) Pricing Fair After Recent Mixed Share Price Performance?
• Negative Sentiment: Wolfe Research downgrade — Wolfe Research cut SBUX to Peer Perform (from Outperform), warning Starbucks is early in a multi‑year turnaround and faces high execution risk; analyst skepticism can pressure sentiment and cap multiple expansion. Starbucks downgraded at Wolfe Research as execution risk remains high
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive/sector criticism — Commentary urging investors to buy a different coffee stock and coverage pieces highlighting competition add downward pressure on conviction for SBUX as a growth play. Don’t Buy Starbucks Stock (SBUX), Says Wolfe Research. Buy This Coffee Company Instead
• Negative Sentiment: Brand backlash risk — A government health official’s public criticism about sugar in seasonal drinks could dent brand perception and invite regulatory or PR headwinds around product formulation and marketing. Starbucks Balances Nashville Supply Chain Push With Sugar Backlash Questions

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.