Starbucks Net Income Fell 96 Percent

November 11th, 2008

Crappy result. Crappy coffee.

Points for consistency?

Via: Bloomberg:

Starbucks Corp., the world’s largest chain of coffee shops, reported fourth-quarter profit that fell more than analysts estimated after customer visits declined for the fifth consecutive quarter.

Starbucks fell 2.9 percent in late Nasdaq trading after saying 2009 earnings per share may be as low as 71 cents or as high as 90 cents, depending on how steeply sales deteriorate. In July it forecast earnings per share of 90 cents to $1. Analysts had estimated 87 cents.

Sales at stores open at least 13 months, a key measure of retail performance, declined 8 percent, which was more than the company expected, as consumers paying higher gasoline and grocery prices cut back on premium coffee. The slowdown has forced Starbucks Chief Executive Officer Howard Schultz to back away from his previous goal of opening 40,000 new cafes as he concentrates instead on making existing stores more profitable.

“The economy is not cooperating,” Emily Sanders, CEO of Sanders Financial Management in Atlanta, said in an interview today on Bloomberg Television. “They are fighting an uphill battle.”

Fourth-quarter net income fell 96 percent to $5.4 million, or 1 cent a share, in the three months through Sept. 28, from $158.5 million, or 21 cents, a year earlier, the Seattle-based company said today in a statement.

Posted in Economy | Top Of Page

2 Responses to “Starbucks Net Income Fell 96 Percent”

  1. MBerger47 says:
    November 11, 2008 at 6:49 pm

    I would never buy shares in this company, but at least they had profits!

  2. tranquil says:
    November 11, 2008 at 7:13 pm

    “The economy is not cooperating”

    Oh wait, you mean it won’t always be the same forever?

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