Is Starbucks Silently Killing Your Portfolio?
Investors have been thrilled with Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) over the past 10 years -- a period that has seen its shares gain 350% versus about 200% for the S&P 500. However, the largest coffee chain in the world has been weighing down portfolios lately with its stock down about 25% so far this year. Here are three reasons why that might be happening.
Starbucks recently announced a record quarterly revenue of $8.2 billion, but there's more than meets the eye. The company has made a big bet on China over the years, growing its store count to 5,761 locations, or about 16.5% of its total portfolio. However, China currently has strict COVID-19 restrictions for its residents, resulting in plummeting sales.
Specifically, revenue in China fell from $905 million in Starbucks' fiscal 2021 third quarter to $544 million in Q3 2022, or about 40%. The average ticket -- an important metric that measures the company's ability to raise prices -- fell by 1% in China during that time. For comparison, North American revenue and average ticket grew 13% and 8% over the same period, respectively.
Source Fool.com
