Starbucks reports mixed results for Q1 2026, despite traffic growth for the first time in two years.
The company’s CEO and chairman, Brian Niccol, said Starbucks’ Q1 results are thanks to its ‘Back to Starbucks’ strategy, which is working ahead of schedule.
“It's great to see the sales momentum driven by more customers choosing Starbucks more often, and this is just the beginning,” he said.
Global comparable store sales increased by 4%, driven by a 3% growth in comparable transactions and a 1% rise in average ticket.
In the U.S alone, comparable store sales increased by 4%. Niccol said this was driven by demand for its holiday offerings, with this season's holiday menu launch being the best ever for the company’s North American business.
The company also experienced a 7% growth in the Chinese market.
During the quarter, Starbucks announced its plans to form a joint venture with Boyu Capital to run its business in China.
“This partnership will help us expand into more cities, deliver exceptional coffee experiences, create new career opportunities for partners, and strengthen Starbucks’ position as a global brand for long-term growth,” Niccol said on the company’s earnings conference call.
Starbucks’ revenue rose 6% to US$9.9 billion, surpassing analysts' expectations of US$9.67 billion. This was driven by the company’s second straight quarter of same-store growth.
Despite the revenue growth, the first quarter net income fell from US$780.8 million, or 69 cents per share in 2025, to US$293.3 million or 26 cents per share in 2026.
This was due to both restructuring costs and tariffs that weighed on the company’s margins during the quarter.
Excluding restructuring costs, impairment charges and other items, the coffee giant earned 56 cents per share, coming in short of the 59 cents per share expected by analysts.
“We’re seeing exactly what we want to see in our top line at this point in our turnaround,” CFO Cathy Smith said on the company’s earnings conference call.
During the quarter, the company also opened 128 new locations and plans to open 600 to 650 more during the fiscal year.
Starbucks has also offered its first financial outlook since suspending its forecast in October 2024.
For fiscal 2026, the company expects U.S. store sales to grow by 3% or more and earnings per share in the range of US$2.15 and US$2.40.
At the time of writing, Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) stocks fell 0.59% to US$95.16. Its market cap is US$108.41 billion.
