CAVA Earnings: Revenue Tops $1 Billion, Guides Higher

CAVA Group reported fiscal 2025 revenue of $1,169.3 million on Feb. 24, 2026, its first full year above $1 billion and a 22.5% increase year-over-year. The company provided guidance for fiscal 2026, projecting same-restaurant sales growth of 3.0% to 5.0% and adjusted EBITDA between $176.0 million and $184.0 million.

Q4 and Fiscal 2025 Results

In the fourth quarter, revenue reached $272.8 million, up 21.2% year-over-year. Net income was $4.9 million, with diluted earnings per share of $0.04, exceeding the consensus estimate of $0.03.

For the full fiscal year, adjusted EBITDA rose 21.0% to $152.8 million, while fourth-quarter adjusted EBITDA increased 2.6% to $25.8 million. Net income for the year totaled $63.7 million, and free cash flow was $26.1 million.

Restaurant-level profit for fiscal 2025 was $285.0 million, representing a 24.4% margin. In the fourth quarter, restaurant-level profit was $58.3 million with a 21.4% margin. Average unit volume for the year was $2.9 million. Digital sales accounted for 37.9% of full-year revenue and 38.9% of fourth-quarter revenue.

Same-restaurant sales grew 4.0% for the year, driven by a 2.4-percentage-point increase from menu price and product mix and a 1.6-point gain in guest traffic. In the fourth quarter, same-restaurant sales rose 0.5%, with a 1.9-point price and mix lift offset by a 1.4-point decline in traffic.

The company opened 72 net new restaurants in fiscal 2025, including 24 in the fourth quarter, ending the year with 439 locations. At quarter-end, CAVA held $393 million in cash and investments and reported no debt.

Brett Schulman, co-founder and chief executive, said, "2025 marked a milestone year for CAVA as we continued to deliver on our mission of bringing heart, health, and humanity to food while scaling the business with a long-term, intentional focus."

Fiscal 2026 Guidance and Expansion Plans

For fiscal 2026, CAVA expects to open 74 to 76 net new restaurants and projects restaurant-level profit margins between 23.7% and 24.2%. The company anticipates pre-opening costs of $19.5 million to $20.0 million. These targets assume the current macroeconomic environment and new-restaurant performance.

Management noted on the Feb. 25 earnings call that a premium salmon menu item will be treated as a higher-priced offering and is expected to create an approximately 100-basis-point headwind to restaurant-level margin starting in the second quarter.

The company tied its planned openings and same-restaurant sales growth to its adjusted EBITDA objectives while acknowledging near-term margin pressure.