Comparing Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) & CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA)

CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) and Yum! Brands (NYSE:YUM) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation, risk, earnings and profitability.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

73.2% of CAVA Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 82.4% of Yum! Brands shares are owned by institutional investors. 6.7% of CAVA Group shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Yum! Brands shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for CAVA Group and Yum! Brands, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CAVA Group	0	10	17	1	2.68
Yum! Brands	1	12	14	0	2.48

CAVA Group presently has a consensus target price of $83.81, indicating a potential upside of 45.78%. Yum! Brands has a consensus target price of $176.62, indicating a potential upside of 10.84%. Given CAVA Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe CAVA Group is more favorable than Yum! Brands.

Profitability

This table compares CAVA Group and Yum! Brands’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CAVA Group	4.50%	7.87%	4.45%
Yum! Brands	39.14%	-25.54%	21.03%

Risk & Volatility

CAVA Group has a beta of 1.75, meaning that its share price is 75% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Yum! Brands has a beta of 0.53, meaning that its share price is 47% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares CAVA Group and Yum! Brands”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
CAVA Group	$1.18 billion	5.69	$63.74 million	$0.54	106.46
Yum! Brands	$8.21 billion	5.20	$1.56 billion	$12.46	12.79

Yum! Brands has higher revenue and earnings than CAVA Group. Yum! Brands is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than CAVA Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

CAVA Group beats Yum! Brands on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About CAVA Group

CAVA Group operates CAVA, a fast-casual restaurant brand focused on Mediterranean-inspired food. Its menu includes customizable bowls, pitas and salads, along with dips, spreads, sides and beverages. The business began in 2006 with a Mediterranean restaurant in Rockville, Maryland, founded by childhood friends Brett Schulman, Dimitri Moshovitis and Ted Xenohristos. CAVA has since grown into a restaurant chain serving customers in multiple U.S. states. Co-founder Brett Schulman serves as CAVA Group’s chief executive officer.

About Yum! Brands

Yum! Brands, Inc. is a global restaurant company that operates and franchises quick-service restaurants under the KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and Habit Burger & Grill brands. Its restaurants serve customers through dine-in, takeout, delivery and digital ordering channels. The company’s brands offer a range of products, including KFC’s chicken meals, Taco Bell’s Mexican-inspired food, Pizza Hut’s pizzas and related items, and Habit Burger & Grill’s chargrilled burgers and sandwiches. Yum! Brands’ business relies heavily on franchised restaurants, alongside locations it operates directly.