# Starbucks Beat Q4 EPS Consensus by 31% and Now Faces 250 More North American Closures

> Starbucks beat Q4 EPS consensus by 31% and now faces roughly 250 more North American closures as tariff refunds fade and margins must reach 11%.

- Published: 2026-10-25T16:26:59+00:00
- Section: Earnings & Results
- Author: News Desk
- URL: https://newsforagent.com/news/2026-10-25/starbucks-q4-earnings-store-closures
- Source: [Yahoo](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/starbucks-earnings-brian-niccol-500m-151832387.html?ref=biztoc.com)

## Key takeaways

- Starbucks reported non-GAAP EPS of $0.85, beating the $0.65 consensus by 30.79%.
- Starbucks said it would close approximately 250 North American coffeehouses, a second round of closures under Brian Niccol.
- Starbucks moved China retail into a licensed joint venture with Boyu Capital, a deal that closed in April 2026.

[Starbucks](https://akta.pro/company-profiles/00005yp/starbucks) reported fiscal fourth-quarter non-GAAP EPS of $0.85, beating the $0.65 consensus by 30.79%, and said it would close approximately 250 North American coffeehouses. The results are due Thursday, October 29, after the close, [Yahoo](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/starbucks-earnings-brian-niccol-500m-151832387.html?ref=biztoc.com) reported. Starbucks is the Seattle-based coffee chain founded in 1971, led by chief executive Brian Niccol.

## Starbucks Adds a Second Round of Closures

Global comparable sales rose 7.9% on 4.2% transaction growth, and non-GAAP operating margin expanded 430 basis points to 14.4%, helped by IEEPA tariff refunds. Management raised full-year EPS guidance to $2.55 to $2.65.

The approximately 250 North American coffeehouse closures were the second round under Niccol and came with restructuring charges and a lower fiscal 2026 net new store outlook. In October, the board raised the quarterly dividend to $0.63 from $0.62. Niccol has declared the core two-year turnaround complete.

Consensus calls for fourth-quarter normalized EPS of $0.7058 against $0.52 a year earlier, on revenue of $9.23 billion versus $9.57 billion. The lower revenue comes from moving China retail into a licensed joint venture with [Boyu Capital](https://akta.pro/company-profiles/00025l5/boyu-capital), a deal that closed in April 2026. Boyu Capital agreed in September 2026 to acquire Xiamen Aircraft Leasing, with the deal expected to close by year-end, Investing.com reported.

## Starbucks Store Count and Cost Programs

Starbucks operates over 41,000 global locations, according to akta.pro [company records](https://akta.pro/company-data), including 21,514 company-operated stores and 19,476 licensed locations worldwide, with the United States representing 72.9% of net sales. The same records list a $2 billion AI-driven cost savings program, with in-house AI tools replacing Microsoft inventory-tracking and IBM maintenance management systems and rollout targeted by late 2027.

## Closures and Job Cuts Before the Report

Starbucks has only one downtown Boston location left, with nearly 20 Greater Boston closures last year, and the chain's $1 billion restructuring eliminated about 900 corporate jobs, Inc. reported in October 2026. Two Starbucks stores at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport are closing due to contract expiration, with HMS Host planning layoffs and the Concourse A store closing December 31, 2026, The Seattle Times reported in October 2026. Starbucks abandoned a Chipotle merger, Seeking Alpha reported in October 2026.

## Starbucks Guidance Due October 29

Management guided for U.S. comparable sales of 6.5% or better in the fourth quarter. Fiscal 2027 guidance is due with the October 29 results.

## Companies in this story

- [Starbucks company profile](https://akta.pro/company-profiles/00005yp/starbucks) · website: https://www.starbucks.com
- [Boyu Capital company profile](https://akta.pro/company-profiles/00025l5/boyu-capital) · website: https://boyucapital.cn

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