Starbucks Corp. said revenue jumped 18% in the March quarter as
traffic increased world-wide.
Shares, up 18% this year through Wednesday's close, jumped 5.4%
in recent after-hours trading.
Sales at company-operated stores in the U.S. open at least 13
months rose 7% during the latest quarter as traffic grew by 2%.
Starbucks' comparable sales world-wide also rose 7%, with a 3%
traffic increase.
The company recently tapped Kevin Johnson, a former chief
executive at Juniper Networks Inc. and 16-year veteran of Microsoft
Corp., as president. He started March 1. The company plans to open
1,650 stores this year. It backed its full-year capital expenditure
of $1.4 billion.
In the latest quarter, the company added 1.3 million members to
its Starbucks Rewards program, bringing total membership to 10.3
million.
For the period ended in March, Starbucks reported a profit of
$495 million, or 33 cents a share, up from $427 million, or 28
cents a share, a year earlier. The result was in line with analyst
predictions.
Revenue increased 18% to $4.56 billion, above analyst
expectations of $4.53 billion.
For quarter ending in June, the company forecast per-share
earnings of 40 cents to 41 cents. Analysts polled by Thomson
Reuters expected per-share profit of 40 cents.
Write to Angela Chen at angela.chen@dowjones.com
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