Can Starbucks Stock Return To Pre-Inflation Shock Highs?

[Note: Starbucks
SBUX
’ fiscal year 2022 ended October 2, 2022]

Starbucks stock (NASDAQ
NDAQ
: SBUX), the world’s leading roaster, marketer, and retailer of specialty coffee worldwide, currently trades at $96 per share, around 24% below its level of $126 seen on July 26, 2021 (pre-inflation shock high), and has the potential for sizable gains. SBUX saw its stock trading at around $70.95 on June 16, 2022, when the Fed kept increasing rates, and now remains up by about 36% from those levels. In comparison, the S&P 500 gained about 15% during this period. SBUX stock has benefited from better-than-expected results so far this year. The company’s sales grew 12% year-over-year (y-o-y) to $26.6 billion in the first three quarters of 2023. SBUX’s operating margin during the fiscal nine months came in at 15.7%, up from 14.4% in the same period last year. The coffee giant saw a profit of $2.52 per share in the first three quarters of FY’23 compared to $2.07 in the same period last year.