Starbucks has explored a possible takeover of Chipotle Mexican Grill, sending shares in the fast-casual restaurant chain up by as much as 8 per cent. It remains unclear whether Starbucks has made a formal offer.
A deal would rank among the largest acquisitions in the restaurant industry. Burger King’s $11.4 billion purchase of Canadian chain Tim Hortons in 2014 remains one of the biggest restaurant buyouts, according to Melius Research.
The reported approach would be led by Starbucks chief executive Brian Niccol, who ran Chipotle until leaving the company in August 2024. Chipotle’s share price has fallen by about half since his departure and is down roughly 20 per cent over the past year.
Starbucks shares initially fell by about 4.4 per cent after news of the potential transaction emerged, before ending the day broadly flat. Neither company responded to requests for comment.
Chipotle, which has a market value of about $41 billion, has faced pressure to encourage customers to visit more frequently. Same-store sales fell by 2.5 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2025, although the company said momentum improved in early 2026.
The chain reported second-quarter revenue of $3.3 billion, an increase of 9.3 per cent from the same period a year earlier. It attributed the rise to the opening of 100 new restaurants and growth in same-store sales.
Analysts at Seaport Research Partners said Chipotle had “struggled since Brian Niccol’s departure” and was using several measures to attract customers. They questioned what Niccol could do differently from the company’s current management if the deal went ahead without clear synergies.
Niccol became Starbucks chief executive in September 2024 and quickly launched a campaign aimed at returning the company to what he described as its coffeehouse roots. Last month, he said Starbucks had made “tremendous progress” in improving customer service and restoring human connection in its cafes.
Starbucks’ turnaround efforts have begun to improve customer traffic, according to Melius Research, although its US operating margins remain under pressure. The analysts said Niccol’s previous leadership of Chipotle gave him considerable familiarity with the business under consideration.
However, Wall Street analysts said there were no obvious synergies between the two companies. TD Cowen described the potential deal as a “low-probability outcome at this stage”, adding that a $40 billion acquisition would appear inconsistent with Niccol’s focus on Starbucks’ “Back to Starbucks” turnaround in the US.
