Starbucks to top McDonald’s as restaurant king: analyst

Starbucks is poised to overtake McDonald's as the world's most valuable restaurant chain, and the coffee giant ultimately could have a staggering 50,000 locations.

That's the prediction of Nomura analyst Mark Kalinowski, who named Starbucks his top restaurant stock for 2017 in a report on Tuesday. He estimates that the company will increase its worldwide restaurant count by 8.4 percent this year and boost same-store sales by more than 5 percent.

There's more room for growth in the beverage industry - and less competition - giving Starbucks an edge over McDonald's and other more food-focused rivals, Kalinowski said. The coffee chain's new upscale Reserve brand also eventually could generate $3 billion in sales, helped by pricier drinks.

Starbucks has set a goal of having 37,000 cafes open by 2021, up from about 25,000 last year.