Contrasting Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) and CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA)

CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) and Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) are both mid-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, risk, earnings and valuation.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

73.2% of CAVA Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.5% of Brinker International shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for CAVA Group and Brinker International, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CAVA Group	0	4	10	0	2.71
Brinker International	3	8	4	1	2.19

CAVA Group presently has a consensus target price of $60.42, suggesting a potential downside of 1.26%. Brinker International has a consensus target price of $43.80, suggesting a potential downside of 8.75%. Given CAVA Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe CAVA Group is more favorable than Brinker International.

Profitability

This table compares CAVA Group and Brinker International’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CAVA Group	1.82%	4.28%	1.50%
Brinker International	3.63%	-113.41%	7.07%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares CAVA Group and Brinker International’s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
CAVA Group	$728.70 million	9.58	$13.28 million	N/A	N/A
Brinker International	$4.13 billion	0.51	$102.60 million	$3.41	14.09

Brinker International has higher revenue and earnings than CAVA Group.

About CAVA Group

CAVA Group, Inc. owns and operates a chain of restaurants under the CAVA brand in the United States. The company also offers dips, spreads, and dressings through grocery stores. In addition, the company provides online and mobile ordering platforms. Cava Group, Inc. was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Washington, the District of Columbia.

About Brinker International

Brinker International, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the ownership, development, operation, and franchising of casual dining restaurants in the United States and internationally. It operates and franchises Chili's Grill & Bar and Maggiano's Little Italy restaurant brands. The company also operates virtual brands, It's Just Wings. Brinker International, Inc. was founded in 1975 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.