On October 8, 2026, reports emerged that Starbucks could be considering a deal for Chipotle, sending Chipotle up near 6.5% and Starbucks lower. The discussion moved to price and capacity: a 30 percent premium would come to about $50 billion, dilutive by mid-single digits in every scenario, with limited cost synergies, and Starbucks holds only about $3.5 billion in cash against Chipotle's $41 billion price. On October 12, Starbucks told Jim Cramer it is not considering acquiring Chipotle. Whether that denial closes the matter remains open.