Chipotle and Starbucks Shares Rise on Reported Merger Speculation

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2▲2 ▼0Impact / 5
Summary · why it matters

Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill and Starbucks reversed early losses and moved higher on speculation that the two chains could merge. Semafor raised the possibility that Chipotle and Starbucks could combine and run operations in a structure similar to Yum! Brands' KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell. The speculation follows reports last week that Chipotle enlisted bankers to fend off a potential takeover, which fueled guessing about who the interested buyer might be. Semafor's Rohan Goswami wrote that Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol spent more than a decade at Yum and understands that scale matters in razor-thin restaurant margins, and that Starbucks could provide a platform to grow Chipotle's nascent international business. Chipotle shares are 1% higher, while Starbucks jumped 1.7% on the development.

Impact on assets 4

Consumer Discretionary▲
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc
CMG
▲ PositiveCapitalrelevance

Speculation that Chipotle could merge with Starbucks lifted its shares after reports it enlisted bankers to fend off a takeover.

Starbucks Corporation
SBUX
▲ PositiveCapitalrelevance

Starbucks shares jumped on reported merger speculation that it could combine with Chipotle and provide a platform for Chipotle's international growth.