Quarterly earnings results are a good time to check in on a company’s progress, especially compared to its peers in the same sector. Today we are looking at Krispy Kreme (NASDAQ:DNUT) and the best and worst performers in the traditional fast food industry.
Traditional fast-food restaurants are renowned for their speed and convenience, boasting menus filled with familiar and budget-friendly items. Their reputations for on-the-go consumption make them favored destinations for individuals and families needing a quick meal. This class of restaurants, however, is fighting the perception that their meals are unhealthy and made with inferior ingredients, a battle that's especially relevant today given the consumers increasing focus on health and wellness.
The 14 traditional fast food stocks we track reported a satisfactory Q4. As a group, revenues were in line with analysts’ consensus estimates.
In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady. On average, they are relatively unchanged since the latest earnings results.
Weakest Q4: Krispy Kreme (NASDAQ:DNUT)
Famous for its Original Glazed doughnuts and parent company of Insomnia Cookies, Krispy Kreme (NASDAQ:DNUT) is one of the most beloved and well-known fast-food chains in the world.
Krispy Kreme reported revenues of $404 million, down 10.4% year on year. This print fell short of analysts’ expectations by 1.7%. Overall, it was a disappointing quarter for the company with full-year revenue and EBITDA guidance missing analysts’ expectations.
“We delivered an 18th consecutive quarter of year-over-year organic sales growth. Excluding the estimated cybersecurity incident impact, results were largely in line with our expectations,” said Josh Charlesworth, Krispy Kreme CEO.

Krispy Kreme delivered the slowest revenue growth and weakest full-year guidance update of the whole group. Unsurprisingly, the stock is down 38.3% since reporting and currently trades at $5.63.
Read our full report on Krispy Kreme here, it’s free.
Best Q4: Dutch Bros (NYSE:BROS)
Started in 1992 by two brothers as a single pushcart, Dutch Bros (NYSE:BROS) is a dynamic coffee chain that’s captured the hearts of coffee enthusiasts across the United States.
Dutch Bros reported revenues of $342.8 million, up 34.9% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 7.6%. The business had an exceptional quarter with an impressive beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Dutch Bros achieved the biggest analyst estimates beat, fastest revenue growth, and highest full-year guidance raise among its peers. The market seems content with the results as the stock is up 3.8% since reporting. It currently trades at $67.20.
Is now the time to buy Dutch Bros? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.
Yum China (NYSE:YUMC)
One of China’s largest restaurant companies, Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) is an independent entity spun off from Yum! Brands in 2016.
Yum China reported revenues of $2.60 billion, up 4.1% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 1.7%. It was a softer quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and same-store sales in line with analysts’ estimates.
Interestingly, the stock is up 15.2% since the results and currently trades at $52.47.
Read our full analysis of Yum China’s results here.
Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM)
Spun off as an independent company from PepsiCo, Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) is a multinational corporation that owns KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and The Habit Burger Grill.
Yum! Brands reported revenues of $2.36 billion, up 16% year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations. Overall, it was a strong quarter as it also recorded a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and same-store sales in line with analysts’ estimates.
The stock is up 20.6% since reporting and currently trades at $158.29.
Read our full, actionable report on Yum! Brands here, it’s free.
Arcos Dorados (NYSE:ARCO)
Translating to “Golden Arches” in Spanish, Arcos Dorados (NYSE:ARCO) is the master franchisee of the McDonald's brand in Latin America and the Caribbean, responsible for its operations and growth in over 20 countries.
Arcos Dorados reported revenues of $1.14 billion, down 2.7% year on year. This result lagged analysts' expectations by 2.7%. Zooming out, it was actually a strong quarter as it produced a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ same-store sales estimates.
Arcos Dorados had the weakest performance against analyst estimates among its peers. The stock is up 9.1% since reporting and currently trades at $8.48.
Read our full, actionable report on Arcos Dorados here, it’s free.
Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our Top 5 Growth Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.
Join Paid Stock Investor Research
Help us make StockStory more helpful to investors like yourself. Join our paid user research session and receive a $50 Amazon gift card for your opinions. Sign up here.