Starbucks ended fiscal 2026 with its strongest sales momentum in the current turnaround, but the mix behind the U.S. number matters. Fourth-quarter U.S. comparable coffeehouse sales increased 7.7%, driven by a 5.2% increase in average ticket and a 2.4% increase in comparable transactions.
That is a healthier result than a price-only comp because traffic was positive. It is not yet a traffic-led recovery: ticket contributed more than twice as much growth as transactions. Starbucks attributed the North America ticket gain to product mix and food attachment, pricing and higher delivery sales.
North America comparable sales rose 7.9%, including a 5.0% ticket increase and 2.7% transaction growth. Segment revenue increased 6% to $7.3 billion, and operating margin reached 12.3%, up from 4.5% a year earlier. Starbucks said lower restructuring costs and sales leverage drove the margin improvement.
The global picture was less uniform. Worldwide comparable sales rose 7.2% as ticket increased 5.2% and transactions rose 1.8%. International comparable sales increased 0.9%, but that result combined a 3.7% ticket gain with a 2.8% transaction decline.
Consolidated fourth-quarter revenue fell 4% to $9.1 billion. Starbucks said the decline primarily reflected converting its China retail operations to a licensed joint-venture model, so the top-line comparison is not a clean measure of customer demand.
Portfolio work also changed the store count. Starbucks opened 303 net new coffeehouses during the quarter and ended with 41,607 globally, 32% company-operated and 68% licensed. The company also closed 250 North America coffeehouses during the quarter under the restructuring plan it announced in September.
The next test is whether Starbucks can turn the fourth-quarter sales mix into durable, less promotion-sensitive demand. For fiscal 2027, management guided to approximately 4% North America comparable-sales growth, a 13.5% to 14.0% non-GAAP consolidated operating margin and non-GAAP earnings of $3.15 to $3.25 per share.
Starbucks also plans approximately 1,200 net new coffeehouses globally in fiscal 2027, led by International. That is a different capital-allocation posture from the North America pruning completed in September: management is closing stores that did not meet its experience or financial standard while placing the next unit-growth emphasis outside the home market.
For restaurant operators, the useful benchmark is the relationship between traffic, ticket and margin. Starbucks produced positive U.S. transactions and substantial margin expansion, but the comp still leaned heavily on ticket. If traffic takes a larger share of growth while the company opens another 1,200 net units, the turnaround will look more durable. If ticket remains the main engine, value perception and mix will deserve closer scrutiny.
