Starbucks (SBUX ) is not participating in Thursday’s rally after an analyst at Wedbush lowered his rating on the stock to Neutral from Outperform.
In a research note, Wedbush analyst Nick Setyan downgraded shares of the coffee retailer to Neutral from Outperform, saying he sees acceleration slowing this year, with risks increasing in 2019. While the analyst sees comparable store sales, or SSS, growth pretty much in-line with expectations this year, he sees a decline in the rate of SSS growth rendering “upside to current expectations less likely.” With its first quarter results, Starbucks said it anticipated “softer” Q2 results than Q1. Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson said, “We are laser-focused on accelerating growth in China and driving improvement across the U.S. business as we move into and through the back half of the year, and remain committed to delivering on the long-term targets we announced last quarter.”
ASIA EXPECTATIONS TOO HIGH: In late January, management at the coffee retailer said its China business would contribute approximately 25% of its yearly sales growth for 2018 and 2019. Wedbush’s Setyan differs with that view, predicting China will only produce 20% of the company’s revenue growth in fiscal 2019. “Our analysis indicates the Mainland China business is poised to drive ~1/5 of FY19 total revenue growth absent a meaningful acceleration in unit growth and SSS growth,” said the analyst.
ANALYST LOWERS EPS VIEW: Wedbush lowered its fiscal year 2018 EPS view to $2.48 from $2.50 and its 2019 EPS estimate to $2.79 from $2.84. Setyan slashed his 12-month price target for Starbucks to $56 from $70.
PRICE ACTION: Shares of Starbucks are fractionally lower to $57.57 per share in early afternoon trading.
