The Quarter in Brief
Starbucks reported its fourth quarter of fiscal 2026, the 13 weeks ended September 27, after the US market closed on Thursday, October 29. Total net revenues were $9.14 billion, down 4.5% from $9.57 billion a year earlier and a little below the roughly $9.22 billion analysts had expected, according to Investing.com. Non-GAAP earnings per share, the company's measure that leaves out restructuring and other items it treats as one-off, were $0.80, up 54% from $0.52 and above the consensus of about $0.71. Reported (GAAP) earnings per share were $0.59, against $0.12 a year earlier.
What set the quarter apart was the gap between the business and the headline revenue. Comparable coffeehouse sales in North America, sales at company-operated coffeehouses open at least 13 months, rose 7.9%, and North America revenue rose 6.2% to $7.33 billion. Total revenue fell mainly because Starbucks' retail business in China became a licensed joint venture in the third quarter: about 8,000 coffeehouses whose full sales Starbucks used to record now pay it royalties and buy its products instead. For the full fiscal year, global comparable sales rose 6.2% and revenue rose 2.0% to $37.91 billion.