Starbucks Fall Menu Puts 13.6% North America Margin to the Test

Starbucks’ India business is looking to add 50 to 100 new stores a year. The move signals the coffee company is sharpening its focus on global markets as CEO Brian Niccol aims to stretch a sales recovery into more lasting growth.

Starbucks Corporation’s Nasdaq-listed shares ended the week with fresh momentum, closing Friday at $103.04, up $0.76, or 0.74%, before slipping to $102.62 in after-hours trading, according to Google Finance market data. The move left the stock roughly 5% below its 52-week high of $108.88, with a market value of about $117.4 billion and a trailing price-to-earnings ratio, or P/E ratio, of 78.64; P/E measures how much investors are paying for each dollar of a company’s past earnings.

Starbucks Corp shares are trading close to a 52-week high ahead of the next Nasdaq session, after the company said it is cutting 300 U.S. corporate jobs and shutting several regional support offices. The move doesn’t hit cafe workers. It’s part of CEO Brian Niccol’s “Back to Starbucks” turnaround. Investors now have to weigh if the latest cost cuts point to discipline or strain.

Starbucks bumped up its full-year forecast on Tuesday after topping Wall Street’s expectations for both sales and profit in the quarter—news that sent shares climbing and gave CEO Brian Niccol a strong signal that his turnaround strategy is working. Revenue hit $9.5 billion for the second quarter, a 9% increase, with adjusted earnings at 50 cents per share for the 13 weeks ending March 29.

Starbucks shares closed Friday down 2.06% at $91.95, marking their fifth consecutive session of declines amid a generally softer U.S. market. The stock is now roughly 22% below its 52-week peak, with trading volume ticking just above the recent average.

Starbucks shares dropped roughly 2% on Friday afternoon, hovering near $92 and touching the lower end of the day's trading range after a volatile week for the stock.

Starbucks shares slipped on Thursday following its Investor Day, where the coffee giant outlined long-term growth and profit goals, fueling ongoing margin concerns. The stock fell roughly 0.7% to $94.49, hitting a low of $93.06 earlier in the session.