Shares of Luckin Coffee, China's Starbucks rival, sink after company says COO fabricated sales

NEW YORK - Shares of Luckin Coffee dived as much as 81 per cent on Thursday after the Chinese coffee chain said an internal investigation had shown that its chief operating officer and other employees fabricated sales transactions.

Luckin, which competes with Starbucks Corp, had been one of China's few successful initial public offerings last year. Its investors include asset management giant Blackrock, Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC and China International Capital Corp. Earlier this year, short-seller Muddy Waters Research shorted the stock, citing a report alleging that Luckin fabricated financial and operating numbers from the third quarter of 2019.

Despite the allegations and mandatory closures related to the outbreak of coronavirus, analysts have largely remained optimistic about Luckin. Prior to Thursday’s disclosure, six had a buy recommendation on the stock, compared to one hold and zero sell recommendations.

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