Starbucks sales, traffic rise as turnaround gains traction in Q2

Starbucks posted its second straight quarter of traffic growth, a fresh sign that Brian Niccol’s turnaround is starting to change how often customers walk in the door and how much they spend once they get there. Global comparable store sales rose 6.2% in the 13 weeks ended March 29, driven by a 3.8% increase in comparable transactions and a 2.3% rise in average ticket.

North America carried most of the quarter. Comparable sales in the region rose 7.1%, matching the U.S. gain, as transactions climbed 4.4% and average ticket increased 2.6%. International comparable sales rose 2.6%, while China edged up 0.5%, showing a more uneven recovery across Starbucks’ global footprint.

Sales and profits both moved higher. Consolidated net revenue rose 9% to $9.53 billion, adjusted earnings came in at 50 cents per share, and GAAP earnings were 45 cents per share, up from 34 cents a year earlier. Operating margin also improved, with GAAP margin expanding to 8.7% and non-GAAP margin reaching 9.4%.

The quarter’s mix matters because Starbucks has been trying to fix the basics inside its cafes. The company said about 80% of stores were meeting its 4-4-12 service targets, four minutes in the café, four in the drive-through and under 12 minutes for mobile pickup. That push for faster service and better staffing has been central to the Back to Starbucks plan, which has aimed to shorten waits, lift customer satisfaction and bring traffic back.

The investment has not come without cost. North America operating margin fell to 9.9% from 11.6% a year earlier as labor spending weighed on the region. Even so, the company raised its fiscal 2026 outlook, now expecting global and U.S. same-store sales to rise by at least 5%, up from a prior forecast of 3%, and lifting adjusted EPS guidance to $2.25 to $2.45 from $2.15 to $2.40. Starbucks also ended the quarter with 41,129 stores worldwide after adding 11 net new locations, including 16,944 in the U.S. and 7,991 in China.

Niccol called the quarter “a milestone” and said it marked the “turn” in the company’s turnaround. The market agreed, pushing Starbucks shares up about 5% in extended trading. The bigger test now is whether the traffic gains hold as the company absorbs higher labor costs, tariff pressure and coffee-price swings, or whether this quarter proves to be only the first clean stretch of a longer recovery.