CAVA Revenue Jumps 31.3% to $365.4 Million in Second Quarter
Key Facts
CAVA Group said revenue rose 31.3% to $365.4 million in the second fiscal quarter of 2026, compared with $278.2 million in the same period a year earlier. The quarter ended on July 12, and results were reported on August 11, so the figures relate to that quarter and do not represent a new announcement on October 27. Revenue growth coincided with a 9.0% increase in same-restaurant sales, alongside expansion of the restaurant network. Reuters reported that revenue exceeded analysts’ estimate of $360.5 million. Same-restaurant sales also beat estimates for growth of 7.63%, according to Reuters.
The company detailed the components of same-restaurant sales growth: traffic rose 5.3%, while menu pricing and product mix added 3.7%. Growth was therefore split between higher guest counts, the pricing effect and what customers chose, rather than being tied to expansion alone. Chief Executive Brett Schulman said same-restaurant sales increased 9.0% and traffic rose 5.3% during the quarter. He added that the company opened 17 net restaurants in the period. The latest restaurants continue to exceed the company’s expectations, he said, referring to the performance of locations added to the network.
The openings helped lift CAVA’s total restaurant count to 476 at quarter-end, after 17 net additions during the period. The number of restaurants increased 19.6% year over year, according to the company’s statement. Over the comparison period, the company attributed revenue growth primarily to 94 net new openings during the quarter or after the comparable quarter of fiscal 2025, and to 9.0% same-restaurant sales growth. This reflects contributions from both new locations and sales at existing restaurants to revenue growth. Digital revenue accounted for 39.0% of the mix in the quarter, the company said.
Quarterly growth extended to income and adjusted operating earnings measures: net income was $23.0 million, up 25.3% from the year-earlier quarter. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization rose to $54.7 million, up 30.0% year over year. But restaurant-level profit margin was 25.7%, down 60 basis points from the second fiscal quarter of 2025. The company attributed the margin decline to costs from launching its salmon dish, a higher mix of third-party delivery and additional wage investments. These factors were partly offset by what the company described as the effect of higher sales, while the margin remained below its level a year earlier.
Against this backdrop, Reuters said the company beat Wall Street expectations for quarterly sales and underlying earnings, but left its annual outlook unchanged amid food-safety concerns and economic uncertainty. The agency quoted Schulman as saying broader consumer concerns about leafy greens and produce affected sales at the end of the quarter, but that they had “started to recover.” The company’s statement reaffirmed its expectation of 75 to 77 net restaurant openings during fiscal 2026. It also kept its expected same-restaurant sales growth range at 4.5% to 6.5%, and its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization range at $181 million to $191 million. Schulman said, according to Reuters, that holding the outlook steady reflected uncertainty around food safety, the economy and inflation.
CAVA set November 4, 2026, for the release of its third fiscal-quarter results, at about 4:10 p.m. Eastern time. The company said its investor call would begin the same day at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time. The date follows the reaffirmation, without changes, of the annual outlook ranges in the second-quarter results statement. The next quarterly results will provide the latest announced reference point for tracking same-restaurant sales, expansion and margins. The fiscal 2026 outlook remains as announced by the company: 75 to 77 net openings, same-restaurant sales growth of 4.5% to 6.5%, and adjusted earnings of $181 million to $191 million.