First Watch Restaurant Group vs Shake Shack
Shake Shack reported revenue of $1.4 billion in fiscal 2025, 1.2 times First Watch Restaurant Group's $1.2 billion in fiscal 2025. First Watch Restaurant Group's revenue grew 20.3% in its latest year, and Shake Shack's grew 15.4%. First Watch Restaurant Group had an operating margin of 2.2%, against 4.3% at Shake Shack. Free cash flow was −$31 million at First Watch Restaurant Group and $57 million at Shake Shack. Their fiscal years end in different months (December 28 and December 31), so the periods don't line up exactly.
Side by side
| First Watch Restaurant Group | Shake Shack | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest fiscal year | FY2025, Dec 28, 2025 | FY2025, Dec 31, 2025 |
| Revenue | $1.2B | $1.4B |
| Revenue growth | 20.3% | 15.4% |
| Revenue growth a year, last 5 years | 29.0% | 22.5% |
| Gross margin | — | — |
| Operating margin | 2.2% | 4.3% |
| Net margin | 1.6% | 3.2% |
| Free cash flow | −$31M | $57M |
| Free cash flow margin | −2.5% | 3.9% |
| Return on capital | 3.3% | 9.6% |
| Net debt to EBITDA | 2.5x | −0.6x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $0M | $0M |
| Change in diluted share count | 0.8% | −5.3% |
| Last close | $12.86 | $71.89 |
| P/E at the last close | 40.2× | 69.1× |
| Insider trades, last 12 months | — | bought $3.2 million, sold $178,081 |
| Piotroski F-score | 4 of 8 | 7 of 8 |
Amounts in each company's own currency, US$ unless marked (a foreign company may report in another), each company's latest fiscal year from its 10-K, or 20-F or 40-F for a foreign company. Growth rates compare with the year before; the five-year rate is the average a year. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending; return on capital is after-tax operating income over the money invested in the business; P/E is the last close over the latest earnings per share. Banks are measured differently (return on equity, efficiency ratio), so some rows apply to one company only.
Ten years
Revenue
US$ billions, fiscal years
First Watch Restaurant GroupShake Shack
Operating margin
Percent of revenue
First Watch Restaurant GroupShake Shack
Free cash flow
US$ billions. Cash from operations minus capital expenditure.
First Watch Restaurant GroupShake Shack
Source: the companies' Form 10-K filings, from SEC EDGAR, and the last close. For information only, not investment advice: the figures describe results, not which company is the better investment. The Filing Desk is not affiliated with either company. Full figures on the First Watch Restaurant Group and Shake Shack pages.