Starbucks Posts In-Line 4Q, But Shares Slide on Outlook

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) reported an in-line 34% increase in fourth-quarter earnings on Wednesday amid growth in the Asia Pacific market, however its shares slid after hours as its outlook failed to impress Wall Street.

The coffee giant said it anticipates current-quarter earnings between 67 cents and 69 cents, falling mostly below the consensus view of 69 cents.

For the full year, it sees earnings between $2.55 and $2.65 on sales growth of at least 10%. The consensus is calling for EPS of $2.67.

Shares of Starbucks slid more than 3% after hours.

In its most recent quarter, the Seattle-based coffee giant reported net income of $481 million, or a record 63 cents a share, compared with a year-earlier profit of $359 million, or 46 cents.

"The fourth quarter of fiscal 2013 capped off by far the best year in Starbucks 42-year-history," the company’s CEO, Howard Schultz, said in a statement.

Excluding a one-time gain related to the sale of equity in Chile and Argentina joint ventures, Starbucks earned 60 cents, matching average analyst estimates in a Thomson Reuters poll.

Revenue for the three-month period ended Sept. 29 climbed 13% to $3.8 billion from $3.4 billion a year ago, narrowly missing the Street’s view of $3.81 billion, though sales at stores open longer than a year were up 7% globally as traffic improved by 5%.

Sales climbed by 11% to $2.8 billion in the Americas, Starbucks’ largest geographic segment, while they gained 29% to $255.7 million in its third-largest but fastest-growing segment: China and the broader Asia Pacific.

Starbucks plans to open 1,500 new stores next year, the most in China, at 750.