Booking Sinks; Starbucks, Centene Jump

3 min

•Apr 28, 2026about 1 month ago

Summary

The Stock Movers Report covers three major earnings announcements: Booking.com drops 3.8% after missing Q2 forecasts due to Iran conflict concerns, Starbucks rises 5% on strong Q2 sales and raised guidance driven by Gen Z cold foam demand, and Centene jumps 14% on surprise profit and Q1 beat signaling strength in health insurance sector.

Insights

Geopolitical tensions (Iran conflict) are directly impacting travel and hospitality sector forecasts and consumer sentiment
Gen Z consumer preferences are driving significant product category growth, with cold foam sales up 40% year-over-year at Starbucks
Health insurance sector showing strength with Centene's largest single-day gain since 2020, suggesting positive momentum for earnings season
Consumer discretionary spending remains resilient in some segments (Starbucks) while travel demand faces headwinds (Booking)
Operational improvements (faster service, better seating, pastry displays) complement product innovation in driving retail performance

Trends

Geopolitical risk factoring into travel and hospitality earnings guidanceGen Z demographic driving premium beverage innovation and category growthHealth insurance sector outperformance during earnings seasonConsumer sentiment divergence between discretionary categoriesOperational excellence becoming competitive differentiator in QSR

Topics

Q2 Earnings Season Travel and Hospitality Sector Performance Iran Conflict Impact on Business Gen Z Consumer Preferences Cold Beverage Innovation Health Insurance Earnings Consumer Sentiment Analysis Stock Market Volatility Starbucks Operational Improvements Post-Market Trading Activity

Companies

Booking.com

Dropped 3.8% after Q2 forecast missed Wall Street expectations due to Iran conflict impacting consumer sentiment

Starbucks

Rose 5% after Q2 sales beat and raised full-year guidance, driven by Gen Z cold foam demand up 40% YoY

Centene

Jumped 14% on surprise profit boost and Q1 beat, largest single-day gain since 2020, signaling health insurer strength

People

Kim Stanavec

Co-host of Stock Movers Report providing market commentary and analysis

Carol Masser

Co-host of Stock Movers Report providing market commentary and analysis

Avalon Purnell

Guest analyst providing detailed earnings analysis and stock movement commentary

Quotes

"Equity indices made by committees? That's the old way. The new way is Bloomberg Equity Indices."

Announcer•Opening

"That is ticker BKNG. Dropping now about 3.8% in post-market moves. That's after its second quarter forecast fell very well short of Wall Street's expectations."

Avalon Purnell•Early segment

"Very into cold foam especially, those sales up 40% from last year."

Avalon Purnell•Starbucks discussion

"Centene, that's ticker CNC, closed up 14% for its biggest one-day jump since 2020."

Avalon Purnell•Mid-segment

Full Transcript

Equity indices made by committees? That's the old way. The new way is Bloomberg Equity Indices. Transparent indices built on data, not opinions. Discover evolved benchmarks for today's equity markets at Bloomberg.com slash equity index subscriptions. Bloomberg Audio Studios. Podcasts, radio, news. The Stock Movers Report, your roundup of companies making moves in the stock market, harnessing the power of Bloomberg data. I'm Kim Stanavec, along with Carol Masser. Let's take a look at some stocks on the move. We're joined by Bloomberg News equities reporter Avalon Purnell. A lot moving in the after hours. Oh, yes. Definitely a lot of earnings news, to say the least. We could start off with booking. That is ticker BKNG. Dropping now about 3.8% in post-market moves. That's after its second quarter forecast fell very well short of Wall Street's expectations. As you can imagine, the Iran conflict is very much impacting them, and they're worried about consumer sentiment. All right, so that's a big one. Yeah, really interesting. Starbucks also reported after the closing bell. Yes, that's ticker SBUX, up now about 5.0, nearly 5%. That's after the second quarter sales beat expectations and it also boosts its full year forecast. Important to note that part of that is because of Gen Z. Very into cold foam especially, those sales up 40% from last year. Okay, are you Gen Z? I am. How's the cold foam? Have you had it? I had the salted caramel quite good Okay here we go I just want my coffee normal Yeah well that because you not Gen Z Be careful where you go here Let go to one I not Gen Z either I know, I know. Never had a cold, I don't even know what a cold foam is. I just want a good cup of cappuccino. Okay, cushier seats, more appetizing pastry displays and speedier service as well at Starbucks. Bum, bum, bum. Okay, let's go to one that was moving in the regular trading session. Yes, Centene, that's ticker CNC, closed up 14% for its biggest one-day jump since 2020. And that's after reporting a pretty surprise profit boost and also first quarter beat. So very much a good sign for health insurers as we head into the rest of the week of earnings. Are you a pumpkin latte kind of gal? A pumpkin spice latte? Oh, hot caramel, man. It's a lot of stuff. A lot of sugar. A little lavender is kind of nice, though. Oh, I haven't tried that. Always fun. But again, you're dealing with sugar, I think, or something. Okay. I'm just saying. The Stock Movers Report from Bloomberg Radio. Check back with us throughout the day for the latest roundup of companies making news on Wall Street. And for the latest market-moving headlines, listen to Bloomberg Radio Live. Catch us on YouTube, Bloomberg.com, and on Apple CarPlay and Android Auto with the Bloomberg Business app. Indices built to someone else's specification? That's the old way. The new way is Bloomberg Equity Indices. Design custom benchmarks and distribute them at speed. Discover evolved benchmarks for today's equity markets at Bloomberg.com slash equity index licensing.