The U.S.-dominated Americas region’s sales at established cafes were up 4 per cent, missing analysts’ call for a gain of 6.1 per cent. Those sales were up 7 per cent in the second quarter and 9 per cent in the first quarter.
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Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) reported third quarter EPS of $0.49 after the bell Thursday, compared to $0.42 a year ago. For the fourth quarter, the company expects earnings of $0.54 to $0.55 per share.
In the USA, the chain’s annual Frappuccino Happy Hour promotion, which began later than past year, was partially overpowered by news about the updated rewards system, Chief Operating Officer Kevin Johnson said in an interview.
However, the company’s shares slipped 3 percent in extended hours after its revenues for the quarter missed estimates.
“We have a clear line of sight to returning our USA business to historic levels of comp sales growth which had been at or above 5 percent for the 25 consecutive quarters prior to Q3”, Starbucks chairman and CEO Howard Schultz said in a news release.
For the full-year 2016, Starbucks continues to expect earnings of $1.88 to $1.89per share.
Domestic sales, which account for the bulk of business, drove an overall revenue increase, easing concerns that customers would spurn changes to the company’s loyalty program that went into effect in April. That matches analysts’ average estimate. The results may have been hurt by turmoil in Europe leading up to the vote for the U.K.to pull out of the European Union. Same-store sales in China increased 3%, shy of forecasts for a 4.4% gain.
Still, Starbucks said it grew membership 18% from a year ago and that there are now 12.3 million active users in the U.S.
The company also is growing in China by accepting mobile-phone payments and expanding its bottled-drink distribution. Last quarter, it was 7 percent.
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