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Seattle, WA, United States (AHN) – Get ready to peel off more bucks for your Starbucks lattes, frappuccinos, espressos and standard brews.

The Seattle coffee chain announced Tuesday that it is raising prices an average of 1 percent in the Northeast and Sunbelt regions. Cities that will see higher prices include Boston, New York, Washington, Atlanta, Dallas and Albuquerque. Prices will remain unchanged in California and Florida.

The increase comes as Starbucks faces higher commodity costs. The company will not raise prices for its packaged coffee sold in its cafes and at grocery stores. That increase came last year when Starbucks raised prices of packaged coffee 17 percent at its cafes and 12 percent at grocery stores.

The coffee giant believes the increases will have little effect on its consumer base, which is less sensitive to prices than some of its rivals.

In early afternoon trading Wednesday, shares of Starbucks were trading higher by 2 percent at $46.21 per share.

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Seattle, WA, United States (AHN) – Starbucks will begin selling beverages in a larger size this week in selected states.

According to ABC television, the company will start rolling out 31-ounce “trenta” cups for iced drinks on Tuesday in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Texas and 10 other states, and on Feb.1 in California.

Trenta-sized drinks will be available nationwide by May 3. They will cost 50 cents more than beverages in the soon to be second-largest size, Venti.

Trenta has been available in selected stores for the past few months but the company’s decision to start offering it officially received mixed reactions from coffee drinkers and baristas in online forums.

“It is ridiculous, but there is so much ice in it, it really only has 16 ounces of liquid,” commented a poster named rikkilee.

“We had a post about this months ago when it first came out, and the general consensus was split down the middle between love and hate. I, personally, enjoy having an iced passion tea lemonade that lasts throughout my classes,” said kikkomato.

“It’s strange that this size is being introduced in the middle of winter,” Venti Urnex Latte said, to which a another user replied that the states chosen for the roll-out all have warm weather.

The change follows Starbucks’ announcement in early January that it was removing its name from its iconic logo. The updated green ring around a black and white Siren will be launched in March and is part of the company’s observance of its 40th anniversary.

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Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz said in a conference call with analysts this afternoon that it will replace Kraft Foods, which for more than a decade has distributed Starbucks coffee to grocery stores in the U.S.

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Martin Coles left Starbucks in December to “pursue new opportunities,” helped on his way by a year’s salary worth about $725,000, plus a year of medical and dental insurance and job hunting services worth up to $14,000.

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Starbucks customers will soon get a jolt before any caffeine touches their lips. The world’s biggest cafe chain is raising prices. Raw coffee prices have been rising. Starbucks (SBUX) said on Wednesday that it has absorbed the higher prices until now, but no more.

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Check out Jeffrey, the Espresso Vivace barista who poured that lovely cappuccino rosetta on the back of the t-shirt he’s wearing. It’s the first in a series, says owner David Schomer. “Each time we sell out of a printed run, we will print the next batch with another original latte art image poured by a Vivace barista. Collect them all!”

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Restaurants are, and will continue to be, an extremely profitable business. As a result, shareholders who have interest in brands such as McDonalds and Starbucks need not to worry about negative implications for the food giants compared to more risky industries. One company in particular, Yum! Brands (YUM), is another brand investors should become familiar with. Consumers may recognize the more specific stores the company owns such as Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, but investors should realize the sales and earnings growth associated with this organization. In addition, while there are many companies in the restaurant industry, Yum not only rings familiar with consumers like Starbucks, but Yum engenders excellent financial news at a level above its competitors.

However, before trying to access these financial statements, it is important to understand more specifics about Yum’s business model. According to Reuters, Yum “is a quick service restaurant (QSR) with over 34,000 units in more than 100 countries and territories.” These quick service restaurants include consumer favorites such as Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Long John Silver’s, and KFC. Whether the operating segment sells pizza or chicken, “Yum develops, operates, franchises and licenses a worldwide system of restaurants, which prepare, package and sell a menu of food items.” (more…)