First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.16, Briefing.com reports. The company had revenue of $316.35 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $317.49 million. First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 0.83% and a net margin of 0.42%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.01 earnings per share.

Here are the key takeaways from First Watch Restaurant Group’s conference call:

• Strong 2025 operating performance: Total revenue grew more than 20% and full-year same-restaurant sales rose ~3.6%, the company opened a record 64 restaurants (ending 2025 with 633 locations) and Q4 adjusted EBITDA increased 38.7% to $33.7 million.
• New-restaurant strength and pipeline: The 2025 restaurant class is tracking ~19% above underwriting, management entered five major new markets with up to a 155-unit opportunity, and the company reiterates long-term expansion toward a 2,200-unit opportunity.
• Menu and marketing initiatives to drive traffic: A systemwide rollout of a redesigned core menu (first major overhaul in ~10 years) plus expanded data-driven digital marketing—which produced several-hundred-basis-point traffic lifts in tests—will be scaled to the majority of the comp base in 2026.
• Cost and pricing headwinds for 2026: Management expects commodity inflation of 1%–3% and restaurant-level labor inflation of 3%–5%, elected not to take early-year pricing (guidance assumes ~2% blended pricing for the year), which could pressure margins if not offset.
• 2026 guidance and corporate items: The company guides same-restaurant sales +1%–3%, total revenue growth 12%–14%, adjusted EBITDA $132M–$140M and CapEx $150M–$160M; CFO Mel Hope will retire later this year with a planned transition and expanded equity awards will increase non-cash G&A charges.

First Watch Restaurant Group Stock Down 20.5%

NASDAQ:FWRG opened at $12.32 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $751.89 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 154.02, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.88. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $16.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.82. First Watch Restaurant Group has a 1-year low of $12.17 and a 1-year high of $21.99.

More First Watch Restaurant Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting First Watch Restaurant Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 EPS beat — FWRG reported $0.24 EPS vs. $0.08 consensus, showing operating leverage versus last year and giving credibility to the turnaround story. Zacks: Tops Q4 Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: 2026 revenue growth target and guidance — Management is targeting ~12%–14% revenue growth and guiding to about $1.4B in revenue while investing in digital marketing and menu innovation, signaling a clear growth plan. MSN: Growth Target & Initiatives
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive despite cuts — Stephens cut its PT to $21 (still “overweight”) and TD Cowen cut to $18 (still “buy”), leaving meaningful upside per their models. Benzinga: Analyst Price Target Changes
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue roughly in line — Q4 revenue was $316.35M vs. $317.49M expected (up 20% YoY), a mixed result that tempers the EPS beat. Yahoo Finance: Sales In Line
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call & disclosures — Management provided details in the earnings transcript and slide deck; investors will parse margins, unit economics and cadence of digital initiatives. Seeking Alpha: Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: CFO retirement — CFO Mel Hope announced a planned retirement later this year; leadership transition creates short‑term execution and disclosure risk until a successor is named. GlobeNewswire: CFO Retirement
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction — Several headlines note shares “plunging” after the print; the combination of a revenue miss (albeit small), low reported margins/ROE and analyst PT trims likely prompted short‑term selling. MSN: Why Shares Are Plunging

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Watch Restaurant Group news, Director William A. Kussell sold 6,165 shares of First Watch Restaurant Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.00, for a total transaction of $104,805.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 26,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $448,834. This trade represents a 18.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 6.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 31.7% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 89,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,352,000 after buying an additional 21,576 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group during the 4th quarter worth about $1,156,000. VARCOV Co. acquired a new position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,128,000. Twinbeech Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $205,000. Finally, Oxford Asset Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $249,000. Institutional investors own 96.11% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Stephens lowered their target price on First Watch Restaurant Group from $24.00 to $21.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Zacks Research raised shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.27.

About First Watch Restaurant Group

First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc (NASDAQ: FWRG) operates a specialty daytime dining concept focused on breakfast, brunch and lunch. The company’s casual, full-service cafés emphasize fresh ingredients, made-to-order entrées and a seasonally driven menu that ranges from omelets and Benedicts to salads, skillets and afternoon sandwiches. First Watch positions itself as a daytime-only destination, with most locations opening early morning and closing by mid-afternoon.

Founded in 1983 by Ken Pendery and John Sullivan in Pacific Grove, California, First Watch began as a single café and gradually expanded through company-owned and select franchised locations.