Coffee shop chain Starbucks has reported a 31 per cent increase in quarterly net income and raised its earnings forecast for the year.
The results beat Wall Street analysts' average estimate by a penny but sent the coffee shop chain's stock down 2.7 per cent in after-hours trading on investor disappointment that the earnings were not higher, analysts said.
The company stuck to its moderate growth forecast for same-store sales, despite double-digit increases in recent months.
"We can have a very healthy growing business in that range," Chief Financial Officer Michael Casey told analysts. "To predict higher I think would be foolhardy."
Net income for the first quarter ended January 2nd rose to $145 million, or 35 cents per share, from $110 million, or 27 cents per share, a year ago. Net revenue rose 24 per cent to $1.6 billion.