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The
late-August return of the global coffeehouse giant's iconic fall
season staple, the Pumpkin Spice Latte, also helped drive up
U.S. same-store sales by 8%, sending shares up 5% premarket on
Thursday.
There was a 20% surge in visits on the day of the Pumpkin Spice
Latte's launch, data from Placer.ai showed.
Starbucks also benefited from its younger, more affluent
consumer base prioritizing their morning coffee fix at a time
when the wider U.S. restaurant industry grapples with a slowdown
wrought by sticky inflation.
"The consumer is stressed, but they're going to go to ... those
affordable luxuries... And Starbucks does a great job with
that," Stephens analyst Joshua Long said, adding that the 2%
rise in customer transactions was "impressive."
The coffee chain has also leaned on its breakfast sandwiches,
wraps and bakery items to drive up customer spending at stores.
Average ticket in the U.S. - or the average spending per
customer on a visit - jumped 6% in the quarter.
Still, China sales came in just 5% higher - much smaller than
the 46% surge seen in the previous quarter - suggesting that
trends in the company's second-largest market were not
recovering as robustly as expected.
Ticket fell 3% in China, indicating consumers were spending less
at the coffee chain, as it also faces tough competition from
local rivals such as Luckin Coffee and Manner Coffee.
Global comparable sales at Starbucks climbed 8% in the fiscal
fourth quarter, compared with analysts' expectations for a 6.56%
rise, according to LSEG IBES data.
Excluding items, Starbucks posted a per-share profit of $1.06
for the quarter ended Oct. 1, surpassing estimates of 97 cents.
(Reporting by Deborah Sophia in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika
Syamnath)
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