Starbucks is worth billions less. People online want to boycott Starbucks. Whether these two items are related is unclear.
There's little doubt that Seattle's coffee company is struggling as the year winds down. Since mid-November, its share price has fallen by 9%, reducing its market valuation by $11 billion.
“Starbucks’s stock is experiencing a historic losing streak, influenced by a confluence of factors,” stated CFRA Research equity analyst Siye Desta via email.
Third-party data implies its foot traffic and sales may be below Wall Street projections. Sales are expanding, but not as fast as investors expected.
Starbucks has been criticized for its treatment of unionizing workers, many of whom walked off the job on Red Cup Day in November.
After the union's pro-Palestine tweet, right- and left-wing boycott calls landed it in the crosshairs of the Israel-Hamas war, though analysts say it's hard to know how these calls are affecting the business or its stock price.
“I don’t think it’s the protests that are driving this,” said Bank of America senior research analyst Sara Senatore. She noted that boycotts did not coincide with foot traffic reductions.
Starbucks has a history of controversy. “We’ve seen this kind of activity before, so it’s hard to conclude that’s why traffic has been so slow.”