Piper Jaffray Reiterates on Starbucks as Customization is Key Theme to Holiday Season

In a report published Monday, Piper Jaffray analyst Nicole Miller Regan reiterated an Overweight rating and $89.00 price target on Starbucks SBUX. In the report, Piper Jaffray noted, “Customization enhances the engagement between a brand and the consumer; and is a theme that will not only be a key holiday focus this year but is an underlying pattern in our long-term restaurant thesis. From a restaurant perspective we observe a ‘blurring of the lines' as the performance gap historically observed between limited service and full service segments continues to narrow. Customization is partially the result of these continued dynamics, as operators evolve in terms of taste, value and service initiatives. From a stock perspective, we believe Starbucks is the best example of flavor, form factor and point of purchase innovation. We maintain our OW rating and $89 target on SBUX shares.” Starbucks closed on Friday at $81.20.