Dave & Buster's vs Shake Shack
Dave & Buster's reported revenue of $2.1 billion in fiscal 2025, 1.5 times Shake Shack's $1.4 billion in fiscal 2025. Dave & Buster's revenue fell 1.4% in its latest year, and Shake Shack's grew 15.4%. Dave & Buster's had an operating margin of 4.1%, against 4.3% at Shake Shack. Free cash flow was −$101 million at Dave & Buster's and $57 million at Shake Shack. Their fiscal years end in different months (February 3 and December 31), so the periods don't line up exactly.
Side by side
| Dave & Buster's | Shake Shack | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest fiscal year | FY2025, Feb 3, 2026 | FY2025, Dec 31, 2025 |
| Revenue | $2.1B | $1.4B |
| Revenue growth | −1.4% | 15.4% |
| Revenue growth a year, last 5 years | 37.0% | 22.5% |
| Gross margin | 85.7% | — |
| Operating margin | 4.1% | 4.3% |
| Net margin | −2.3% | 3.2% |
| Free cash flow | −$101M | $57M |
| Free cash flow margin | −4.8% | 3.9% |
| Return on capital | 4.1% | 9.6% |
| Net debt to EBITDA | 4.3x | −0.6x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $24M | $0M |
| Change in diluted share count | −13.3% | −5.3% |
| Last close | $7.07 | $64.89 |
| P/E at the last close | — | 68.3× |
| Insider trades, last 12 months | bought $122,033, sold $102,668 | bought $3.2 million, sold $178,081 |
| Piotroski F-score | 6 of 9 | 7 of 8 |
Amounts in each company's own currency, US$ 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
Dave & Buster'sShake Shack
Operating margin
Percent of revenue
Dave & Buster'sShake Shack
Free cash flow
US$ billions. Cash from operations minus capital expenditure.
Dave & Buster'sShake 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 Dave & Buster's and Shake Shack pages.