Starbucks Stock Is Rising Wednesday: What's Going On?

Starbucks Corp SBUX shares are trading higher Wednesday on the heels of the company’s fiscal first-quarter results. Multiple analysts lifted price targets following the print. Here’s what you need to know.

• Q1 Revenue: $9.4 billion, versus estimates of $9.32 billion

• Q1 EPS: 69 cents, versus estimates of 66 cents

Total revenue was flat compared to the prior year’s quarter. Comparable store sales declined 4% globally, driven by a 6% decline in comparable transactions, partially offset by a 3% increase in average ticket. Comparable store sales fell 4% in North America, 4% internationally and 6% in China during the quarter.

On the call, Niccol noted that the company is exploring opportunities in China to boost sales in the country. The Starbucks CEO also said the company will not open as many new locations in 2025, but he sees demand for significantly more stores longer term.

Active loyalty rewards memberships were up 1% on a year-over-year basis, and up 2% from the fourth quarter of 2024. Starbucks said U.S. gift card loads reached $3.5 billion. The company opened 377 net new stores in the first quarter and ended the period with 40,576 total locations.

"While we're only one quarter into our turnaround, we're moving quickly to act on the ‘Back to Starbucks' efforts and we've seen a positive response," said Brian Niccol, chairman and CEO of Starbucks.

"We believe this is the fundamental change in strategy needed to solve our underlying issues, restore confidence in our brand and return the business to sustainable, long-term growth."

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Following the company’s quarterly results, Barclays analyst Jeffrey Bernstein maintained Starbucks with an Overweight rating and raised the price target from $119 to $124. Wedbush analyst Nick Setyan maintained a Neutral rating and raised the price target from $95 to $100.

SBUX Price Action: Starbucks shares were up 2.47% at $102.89 at the time of publication Wednesday, according to Benzinga Pro.

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