Nike vs Starbucks
Add, change or remove companies; up to four.
KIRA’s take AI analyst
I put Nike and Starbucks side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:
- Nike is the larger business, with $46.4B of revenue in fiscal 2026 against $37.2B for Starbucks.
- Starbucks grew revenue faster (2.8%, against 0.2%).
- Starbucks turned more of its sales into free cash flow (6.6% FCF margin, against 4.7%).
- Starbucks earned a higher return on the capital invested in it (47.8%, against 26.1%).
- Investors pay more for each dollar of Starbucks’s earnings: a P/E of 59.0x against 18.2x for Nike.
Who comes out ahead
Of the 8 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.
Nike
NKE
4/8
Net marginPiotroski F-scoreNet debt / EBITDAShare count change
Starbucks
SBUX
4/8
Revenue growth5-year growthFCF marginReturn on capital
Side by side
Best in the row
| Latest fiscal year | NKE FY26 | SBUX FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| Market cap | $56.3B | $117.5B |
| Revenue | $46.4B | $37.2B |
| Free cash flow | $2.2B | $2.4B |
| Net income | $3.1B | $1.9B |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth | 0.2% | 2.8% |
| 5-year growth | 0.8% | 9.6% |
| Share count change | −0.4% | 0.2% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | 42.9% | — |
| Operating margin | — | 7.9% |
| Net margin | 6.7% | 5.0% |
| FCF margin | 4.7% | 6.6% |
| Return on capital | 26.1% | 47.8% |
| Return on equity | 22.1% | — |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net debt | −$1.1B | $12.6B |
| Net debt / EBITDA | −0.2x | 2.7x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $2.6B | $2.8B |
| Valuation & quality | ||
| P/E | 18.2x | 59.0x |
| Piotroski F-score | 7 | 4 |
Ten years
Revenue
Operating margin
Free cash flow
Return on capital
Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.