It’s time to move to the sidelines on Starbucks , according to Deutsche Bank. Analyst Brian Mullan downgraded shares of Starbucks to hold from buy, saying gains for the stock will be harder to come by after a recent run-up. “[We] are not negative on SBUX; but rather we are simply moving to Hold on what we deem to be a balanced Risk Reward scenario at present,” Mullan wrote in a Monday note. “We wouldn’t be surprised to see a strong Holiday season; and if that is correct, momentum could continue for a bit longer.” Over the past three months, the analyst has been bullish on shares of Starbucks. He said he expected the stock could climb to $100 per share following a successful Investor Day in September, and north of $100 after the coffee chain reported “excellent” earnings results in early November. Now that both scenarios have played out, the analyst says the setup for the stock is not as favorable as it was before. Shares closed Friday at $105.05. “In essence, with SBUX, we think the ‘easy part’ of the move has probably taken place with the stock at ~$105, which is the reason for the ratings change at this point in time. We consider ourselves to be truly neutral at current levels; neither positive nor negative,” Mullan wrote. Shares of Starbucks have beaten the broader market this year, down about 10% in 2022, while the S & P 500 is off by nearly 15%. This quarter, Starbucks has jumped nearly 25%; the S & P 500 is up 13.5%. The analyst’s $106 price target is roughly in line with where shares closed Friday. The stock is down nearly 1.7% in Monday premarket trading. —CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
