$Starbucks (SBUX.US)$ shares are trading higher Monday following a report suggesting activist investor interest is brewing.

What Happened: According to a Wall Street Journal report citing people familiar with the matter, activist investor Starboard Value has taken a stake in Starbucks and wants the coffee giant to focus on boosting its stock price.

Details on the size of Starboard's stake or the firm's exact demands were not shared in the report.

The news comes as Starbucks is in talks for a settlement agreement with another activist investor Elliott Investment Management. Elliott reportedly built a sizable stake in the company earlier this year and has been engaging with the company on ways to boost its stock price.

The activist investor interest comes with Starbucks shares down approximately 22% year-to-date as Starbucks has cut its guidance twice this year as sales in key markets U.S. and China have slumped.

SBUX Stock Prediction 2024

Equity research can be a valuable source of information for learning about a company's fundamentals. Analysts create financial models based on the fundamentals and expected future earnings of a company to arrive at a price target and recommendation for the stock.

Shares of Starbucks have an average one-year price target of $87.62, representing an expected upside of 16.69%.

Because of differences in assumptions, analysts can arrive at very different price targets and recommendations. No analysts have bearish recommendations on Starbucks, while 6 analysts have bullish ratings. The Street high price target from BofA Securities is $112, while the Street low from Wedbush is $77.