New York, May 20, 2026, 07:19 EDT
Cava Group shares rose in premarket trade Wednesday. The Mediterranean fast-casual chain reported solid customer traffic, topped first-quarter forecasts and raised its full-year outlook.
Cava delivered the kind of clean traffic number restaurant investors wanted as they look for signs that consumers will still pay up for fast-casual food even with tight budgets. Same-restaurant sales rose 9.7%, with guest traffic up 6.8%. That strips out the effect of new store openings.
Cava (CAVA) was quoted at $83.50 ahead of the New York session, gaining 6.9% from Tuesday’s $78.12 finish. Google Finance reported first-quarter EPS at 20 cents, topping the 17-cent estimate, and revenue came in at $438.27 million compared to the $418.62 million forecast.
CAVA said revenue jumped 32.2% to $434.4 million from last year. Consolidated revenue showed $438.3 million. Net income dropped to $23.6 million, or 20 cents a share, from $25.7 million, or 22 cents. The company said profit was hit by a smaller tax benefit and higher depreciation.
Cava said it opened 20 net new restaurants last quarter, bringing its total to 459. The company also lifted its forecast for 2026, now targeting 75 to 77 net new CAVA restaurant openings, 4.5% to 6.5% growth in same-restaurant sales, and adjusted EBITDA between $181 million and $191 million. EBITDA stands for earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization, while “adjusted” EBITDA refers to a company-modified profit metric. Business Wire
Cava CEO Brett Schulman said the quarter showed the company can “meet the moment for the modern consumer,” citing higher traffic and openings in Cincinnati, St. Louis and Columbus. Cava also said the results showed “structural strength” in its business. Cava Group
Telsey Advisory Group lifted its price target on Cava to $95 from $92 after the company’s first-quarter results, keeping its Outperform call. Telsey pointed to 9.7% comp sales growth and adjusted EBITDA near $62 million, above its $55 million estimate. Jefferies, Stifel, Morgan Stanley, and Mizuho also raised their targets after the numbers, according to Investing.com.
Cava’s quarter stood out in fast-casual. The company posted the best same-store sales growth in the segment, Restaurant Dive reported, with Sweetgreen and Wingstop seeing sharp drops in comparable sales. “We’re certainly pleased with the quarter,” CFO Tricia Tolivar told Restaurant Dive. Restaurant Dive
Cava is working to hold its value proposition but isn’t pushing heavy discounts. Tolivar said the company was “creating a bit of a bridge in a K-shaped economy,” pointing to the divide in spending between higher- and lower-income customers. That’s important since traffic was the main driver this quarter, not just higher menu prices.
Tech is now a selling point. Business Insider says Cava is rolling out Cava Core and Cava Current, platforms used to predict demand, set staffing, and tailor digital ads. Schulman said the tools are supposed to “enhance the human experience, not replace it.” Chipotle and Sweetgreen are both putting money into their own data platforms, keeping pressure on the field. Business Insider
Cava isn’t risk-free here. The stock is still expensive on earnings. Management has warned about margin pressure from higher energy bills, labor spending, and the national salmon rollout. MarketBeat quoted Tolivar saying salmon could drag restaurant-level margin rates by about 100 basis points starting in the second quarter, though it’s priced to keep penny profit flat. One basis point is 0.01%.
Cava faces a tougher hurdle now. Investors are backing its gains in traffic, new stores, and price control, but the question for Cava is if it can hang onto that mix as it expands, while managing higher food, wage, and delivery costs and not shifting too much cost to customers.
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