Just months after assuming full control of its underperfoming Chinese chain, Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE: QSR) is moving swiftly to offload its Burger King China operations.
Restaurant Brands International (NYSE:QSR) Q1 revenue rose 21.3% to $2.11B, missing estimates. Adjusted EPS of $0.75 fell short of $0.78 consensus. Comparable sales dropped for Tim Hortons, Burger King, and Popeyes.
Fast-food company Restaurant Brands (NYSE:QSR) missed Wall Street’s revenue expectations in Q1 CY2025, but sales rose 21.3% year on year to $2.11 billion. Its non-GAAP profit of $0.75 per share was 4.1% below analysts’ consensus estimates.
A company that generates cash isn’t automatically a winner.
Some businesses stockpile cash but fail to reinvest wisely, limiting their ability to expand.
A company with profits isn’t always a great investment.
Some struggle to maintain growth, face looming threats, or fail to reinvest wisely, limiting their future potential.
Goldman Sachs flags ongoing risks for U.S. restaurants in 2025, with macro uncertainty, weak consumer sentiment, and tariff pressures weighing on growth.
As the Q4 earnings season wraps, let’s dig into this quarter’s best and worst performers in the traditional fast food industry, including Restaurant Brands (NYSE:QSR) and its peers.
The end of the earnings season is always a good time to take a step back and see who shined (and who not so much). Let’s take a look at how traditional fast food stocks fared in Q4, starting with Domino's (NASDAQ:DPZ).
Commodity trends shifted in Q1, with deflation in grains but a spike in coffee prices. Restaurant stocks lag historic EPS multiples, and investors now eye April demand and potential tariff impacts.
Restaurant Brands has followed the market’s trajectory closely. The stock is down 12.4% to $61.50 per share over the past six months while the S&P 500 has lost 7.7%. This was partly driven by its softer quarterly results and may have investors wondering how to approach the situation.
Wrapping up Q4 earnings, we look at the numbers and key takeaways for the traditional fast food stocks, including Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK) and its peers.
Restaurants increase convenience and give many people a place to unwind. But it’s not all sunshine and rainbows as they’re notoriously hard to run thanks to perishable ingredients, labor shortages, or volatile consumer spending.
Unfortunately, these factors have spelled trouble for the industry as it has shed 3.9% over the past six months. This performance was disappointing since the S&P 500 held steady.
J.P. Morgan analyst John Ivankoe hosted Bloomin' Brands, CAVA Group and others at the Las Vegas forum. A major takeaway: focus on "doing fewer things better" with continued investments in customer and employee experiences. The analyst recommends adding fresh investments in BROS, SBUX, and CAVA, while maintaining cautious optimism on CMG and EAT.
Chick-fil-A's well-known policy of closing on Sundays continues to have a significant impact on the fast-food industry. Despite its success, Chick-fil-A's weekly closure leaves a void competitors rush to fill.
