6. Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX)
Number of Hedge Fund Holdings in Q4 2025: 59
Coffee retailer Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX)’s shares are up by 22% over the past year and by 27% year-to-date. Cramer has frequently discussed the firm over the past several months and commented on its CEO, Brian Niccol and his turnaround efforts. The CNBC TV host stuck with the Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) CEO even as investors doubted him and the stock tumbled last year. Guggenheim raised the share price target to $95 from $90 and kept a Neutral rating on the shares on March 5th. As part of its coverage, the firm discussed the coffee retailer’s same-store sales growth estimates and its earnings projections for the next couple of years. Cramer discussed Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX)’s CEO and the firm’s turnaround efforts:
“And also Starbucks, because of the turnaround there, remember Brian Niccol.
“Well it’s there, I mean the main thing about Starbucks that people don’t realize, is that he did have the, that Brian Niccol had to deal with labor issues, and he solved the labor issues. But they hurt the gross margins. Now you’ve got gross margins getting because because of labor, and coffee is so inexpensive that the stock’s going to work here. He’s playing offense now, and when I spent a lot of time with Brian, what you realize is that he inherited a broken company.”
Polen Focus Growth Strategy discussed Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) in its Q1 2026 investor letter:
“Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) was the top performing absolute and relative contributor in Q1 amid positive signs that CEO Brian Nicol’s multi year turnaround strategy is beginning to bear fruit. Comparable store sales have ticked up, and the company is seeing improved results from stores that have undergone a revamp as part of the overall turnaround strategy. Our confidence in the new management team and their ability to execute a multi-pronged, sensible and achievable plan was a primary reason for reacquiring the company last year, in addition to the non-cyclical characteristics that the company possess which were on display amidst the volatility so far this year.”
While we acknowledge the potential of SBUX to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than SBUX and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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