Declining Commodity Prices Bring a Former Holding Back to the Bullpen

Following on my comment Wednesday morning about the market being technically overbought, its emphasis, if not overemphasis on the AI basket, and potentially overlooked opportunities, let’s take a look at some interesting developments in key commodities. 

What we see in the charts above is a clear decline in the cost of coffee, dairy, sugar and cocoa prices, a basket of ingredients for companies such as Starbucks (SBUX), Hershey (HSY), Black Rock Coffee (BRCB), and former Pro Portfolio holding, Dutch Bros (BROS). 

While transportation costs have risen and are likely to remain a headwind for some time even after a formal U.S.-Iran peace agreement is announced, the declines in those commodities paired with pricing action taken could translate into better-than-expected margins in the coming quarters. If consumer inflation pressures, like those for food and gas prices, improve in the second half of 2026, market sentiment is likely to return for companies tied to disposable consumer spending.

With that in mind, we will add Dutch Bros back to the Portfolio’s Bullpen, where it joins Hershey as well as recently added Boeing (BA), and Starfighters Space (FJET). 

Why Dutch Bros and not Starbucks?

The Dutch Bros story remains much more tied to geographic expansion that the one for Starbucks, and Dutch’s expected EPS growth rate over the next few years is 50% higher than that for Starbucks.

At the time of publication, TheStreet Pro Portfolio had no positions in any securities mentioned.

Symbol (Add to Bullpen)
BROS
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Posted by Chris Versace

With 30 years of cross-industry experience, Chris Versace brings his thematic investing lens to TheStreet Pro Portfolio (formerly Action Alerts PLUS) each day as lead portfolio manager. His daily insights, analysis, and recommendations provide the foundation for TheStreet's Pro Portfolio. Versace began his career in equity research before founding Versace Management in 2005. He joined TheStreet team in 2011 as a Real Money contributor before becoming portfolio manager of Action Alerts PLUS in 2021. He holds an MBA from Fordham Gabelli School of Business and has co-authored a book called “Cocktail Investing - Distilling Everyday Noise into Clear Investing Signals for Better Returns.” With a passion for teaching others about investing, Versace spent 9 years as an Assistant Professor of Finance at NJCU School of Business. When he’s not contributing to TheStreet’s premium services, he can be found speaking at industry conferences or at a Bruce Springsteen concert (he’s seen him 50 times and counting!).

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