LKNCY vs YUMC vs SBUX Stock Comparison

Luckin Coffee, Yum China Holdings and Starbucks Prices as of Nov 2, 2026 Peers: Industry group
LKNCY Luckin Coffee Inc.
$31.38 -5.5% 1M -21.7% 1Y
Market cap
$8.47B
P/E
19.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$8.04B
Div. yield
–
Quick-Service Restaurants Consumer Discretionary
5 wins
YUMC Yum China Holdings, Inc.
$47.07 +17.7% 1M +8.8% 1Y
Market cap
$16.24B
P/E
16.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$12.44B
Div. yield
2.36%
Quick-Service Restaurants Consumer Discretionary
3 wins
SBUX Starbucks Corp
$104.40 +10.2% 1M +29.1% 1Y
Market cap
$119.02B
P/E
60.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$38.34B
Div. yield
2.38%
Quick-Service Restaurants Consumer Discretionary
4 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Luckin Coffee leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Luckin Coffee 5, Starbucks 4, Yum China Holdings 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionLKNCYYUMCSBUXLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $8.47B $16.24B $119.02B SBUX
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 19.2x 16.8x 60.0x YUMC
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 14.5x 15.5x 34.9x LKNCY
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +40.7% +8.8% +4.5% LKNCY
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 6.5% 7.8% 5.2% YUMC
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 16.5% 31.4% SBUX
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA -2.2x -0.7x 2.1x LKNCY
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield — 2.36% 2.38% SBUX
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -21.7% +8.8% +29.1% SBUX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +15.7%/yr -3.9%/yr -1.5%/yr LKNCY
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 43.3% 25.8% 27.5% YUMC
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 81/100 72/100 33/100 LKNCY

Percentile Scorecard

LKNCYYUMCSBUX

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisLKNCYYUMCSBUX
Valuation 74 #14 of 50 69 #16 of 50 8 #46 of 50
Growth 87 #7 of 48 47 #26 of 48 17 #40 of 48
Profitability 76 #12 of 47 63 #18 of 47 67 #16 of 47
Financial Health 86 #8 of 51 88 #7 of 51 40 #31 of 51
Shareholder Returns – 94 #3 of 33 34 #22 of 33
Overall 81 72 33
  • LKNCY ranked among 53 companies in Restaurants
  • YUMC ranked among 53 companies in Restaurants
  • SBUX ranked among 53 companies in Restaurants

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodLKNCYYUMCSBUXSPY
1 month -5.5%+17.7%+10.2% -2.3%
3 months -15.4%-2.7%+1.0% -0.7%
6 months -7.0%-1.6%-0.5% +4.8%
Year to date -6.3%-1.4%+24.0% +10.3%
1 year -21.7%+8.8%+29.1% +10.3%
3 years -7.1%+3.7%+1.7% +73.0%
3 years, per year -2.4%+1.2%+0.6% +20.1%
5 years +107.5%-17.9%-7.3% +61.9%
5 years, per year +15.7%-3.9%-1.5% +10.1%
10 years —+77.0%+97.1% +258.6%
10 years, per year —+5.9%+7.0% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureLKNCYYUMCSBUXSPY
Volatility, 1Y 43.3%25.8%27.5% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 37.6%24.3%24.7% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.390.240.54 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.500.341.06 0.80
Max drawdown, 5Y -58.9%-54.6%-40.2% -25.4%
From 52-week high -22.1%-18.8%-3.8% -3.5%
52-week high $40.30$57.95$108.55 $779.14
52-week low $27.67$39.98$79.60 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleLKNCYYUMCSBUX
P/E now vs peer median 19.2xmedian 21.4x 16.8xmedian 21.4x 60.0xmedian 21.4x
P/S now vs peer median 1.1xmedian 1.1x 1.3xmedian 1.1x 3.1xmedian 1.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 13.8xmedian 13.8x 8.1xmedian 13.8x 27.7xmedian 13.8x
P/FCF now vs peer median 9.7xmedian 17.5x 17.3xmedian 17.5x 32.7xmedian 17.5x
P/B now vs peer median 3.5xmedian 3.1x 2.7xmedian 3.1x -15.5xmedian 3.1x
PEG now vs peer median 0.98median 0.96 1.02median 0.96 -3.12median 0.96

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsLKNCYYUMCSBUX
Revenue $8.04B $12.44B $38.34B
Gross profit $4.93B $2.14B –
Operating income $782.17M $1.38B $2.98B
Net income $545.06M $1.05B $1.98B
Free cash flow $871.30M $940.00M $3.64B
EPS (diluted) $1.63 $2.79 $1.73
Cash & equivalents $1.14B $485.00M $3.45B
Total debt $286.11M $66.00M $13.28B
Shares (diluted) 321.02M 349.00M 1.14B
Enterprise value $4.73B $10.60B $106.65B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricLKNCYYUMCSBUX
P/E 19.2x 16.8x 60.0x
P/FCF 9.7x 17.3x 32.7x
P/Operating cash flow 9.7x 10.3x 23.9x
P/S 1.1x 1.3x 3.1x
P/B 3.5x 2.7x -15.5x
P/Tangible book 3.5x 2.7x -15.2x
EV/EBITDA 13.8x 8.1x 27.7x
EV/EBIT 9.3x 10.8x 43.2x
EV/Revenue 0.9x 1.2x 3.4x
EV/FCF 8.4x 15.9x 35.3x
EV/Operating cash flow 8.4x 9.5x 25.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.98 1.02 -3.12

Growth

14 metrics
MetricLKNCYYUMCSBUX
Revenue growth (1Y) 40.7% 8.8% 4.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 46.0% 6.3% 3.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 41.3% 9.7% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 46.4% 5.6% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 12.2% 12.8% -24.9%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 26.3% 10.3% -17.8%
Net income growth (1Y) -0.4% 6.3% -24.7%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 20.7% 9.0% -19.4%
EPS growth (1Y) -4.3% 13.7% -24.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 19.6% 16.5% -19.2%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -2.2% 9.6% 1.7%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 27.4% -3.0% -1.2%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -2.2% 12.7% 61.6%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 27.4% -4.0% 6.9%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricLKNCYYUMCSBUX
Gross margin 61.3% 17.2% –
EBITDA margin 6.6% 14.9% 12.1%
Operating margin 9.7% 11.1% 7.8%
Pretax margin 10.0% 11.5% 8.0%
Net margin 6.5% 7.8% 5.2%
FCF margin 10.8% 7.6% 9.5%
Operating cash flow margin 10.8% 12.7% 13.0%
Return on equity 22.7% 17.3% –
Return on assets 11.1% 9.7% 6.7%
Return on invested capital – 16.5% 31.4%
Return on capital employed 24.9% 16.4% 15.3%
Asset turnover 1.6x 1.1x 1.3x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.6x 1.5x 2.5x
Stock comp / revenue – 0.3% 1.0%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricLKNCYYUMCSBUX
Debt / assets 5.5% 0.6% 46.9%
Debt / equity 0.1x 0.0x -1.7x
Net debt / EBITDA -2.2x -0.7x 2.1x
Debt / FCF 0.3x 0.1x 3.6x
Liabilities / assets 52.9% 44.2% 127.1%
Equity / assets 47.1% 55.8% -27.1%
Interest coverage 3,082x – 5.4x
Current ratio 1.5x 1.0x 0.8x
Quick ratio 0.8x 0.6x 0.5x
Cash ratio 0.8x 0.6x 0.4x
Altman Z-score 4.05 3.80 3.16

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricLKNCYYUMCSBUX
Dividend yield – 2.4% 2.4%
Net buyback yield – 8.0% -0.1%
Shareholder yield – 10.4% 2.3%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 35.7% –
Payout ratio (FCF) – 40.0% –
Dividend growth (1Y) – 24.5% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 21.6% –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusLKNCYYUMCSBUX
Forward P/E 14.5xFY2026 15.5xFY2026 34.9xFY2027
EPS, next fiscal year $2.16FY2026 $3.04FY2026 $2.99FY2027
EPS growth, next FY +35.0%FY2026 +21.1%FY2026 +34.9%FY2027
EPS growth, the year after +28.2% +15.5% +30.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $9.64BFY2026 $12.37BFY2026 $35.66BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +36.7%FY2026 +4.8%FY2026 -4.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +20.8% +6.3% +5.4%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersLKNCYYUMCSBUX
Held by institutions 0.0% 66.8% 85.6%
Institutions holding 9 661 2,403
Change in shares held, QoQ +880.6% +1.4% +4.9%
Institutions buying 5 262 1,099
Institutions selling 0 231 992
Buyers to sellers – 1.13 1.11

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

LKNCYYUMCSBUX
LKNCY 1.00 0.23 0.18
YUMC 0.23 1.00 0.26
SBUX 0.18 0.26 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, LKNCY, YUMC and SBUX?

Starbucks (SBUX) is the largest by market capitalisation: Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) $8.47B, Yum China Holdings (YUMC) $16.24B, Starbucks (SBUX) $119.02B.

Which stock is cheaper, LKNCY, YUMC and SBUX?

Yum China Holdings (YUMC) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) 19.2x, Yum China Holdings (YUMC) 16.8x, Starbucks (SBUX) 60.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) is cheapest (Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) 14.5x, Yum China Holdings (YUMC) 15.5x, Starbucks (SBUX) 34.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) +40.7%, Yum China Holdings (YUMC) +8.8%, Starbucks (SBUX) +4.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Yum China Holdings (YUMC) has the highest net margin (Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) 6.5%, Yum China Holdings (YUMC) 7.8%, Starbucks (SBUX) 5.2%). On return on invested capital, Starbucks (SBUX) leads (Yum China Holdings (YUMC) 16.5%, Starbucks (SBUX) 31.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Starbucks (SBUX) returned the most: Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) -21.7%, Yum China Holdings (YUMC) +8.8%, Starbucks (SBUX) +29.1%. Over five years, Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) compounded fastest (Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) +15.7%/yr, Yum China Holdings (YUMC) -3.9%/yr, Starbucks (SBUX) -1.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Starbucks (SBUX) has the highest dividend yield: Yum China Holdings (YUMC) 2.36%, Starbucks (SBUX) 2.38%. Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Yum China Holdings (YUMC) has been the steadiest (Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) 43.3%, Yum China Holdings (YUMC) 25.8%, Starbucks (SBUX) 27.5%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, LKNCY, YUMC and SBUX?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Luckin Coffee (LKNCY) leads on 5. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.