CAKE vs DRI Stock Comparison

Cheesecake Factory and Darden Restaurants Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
CAKE Cheesecake Factory Inc
$108.37 +3.8% 1M +93.8% 1Y
Market cap
$5.10B
P/E
28.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.88B
Div. yield
0.01%
Full-Service Restaurants Consumer Discretionary
3 wins
DRI Darden Restaurants Inc
$212.38 -0.7% 1M +13.9% 1Y
Market cap
$24.17B
P/E
20.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$13.37B
Div. yield
–
Full-Service Restaurants Consumer Discretionary
8 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Darden Restaurants leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (Darden Restaurants 8, Cheesecake Factory 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCAKEDRILeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $5.10B $24.17B DRI
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 28.5x 20.4x DRI
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 25.1x 17.9x DRI
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +5.7% +8.1% DRI
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 4.6% 8.8% DRI
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 17.1% 32.9% DRI
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.2x 1.1x DRI
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +93.8% +13.9% CAKE
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +20.7%/yr +7.9%/yr CAKE
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 39.7% 27.9% DRI
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 50/100 48/100 CAKE

Percentile Scorecard

CAKEDRI

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCAKEDRI
Valuation 27 #37 of 50 33 #34 of 50
Growth 70 #15 of 47 26 #35 of 47
Profitability 60 #19 of 46 80 #10 of 46
Financial Health 46 #28 of 51 26 #38 of 51
Shareholder Returns 50 #17 of 33 75 #9 of 33
Overall 50 48
  • CAKE ranked among 53 companies in Restaurants
  • DRI ranked among 53 companies in Restaurants

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCAKEDRISPY
1 month +3.8%-0.7% -1.0%
3 months +27.9%+8.2% +2.9%
6 months +75.6%+5.6% +6.4%
Year to date +114.7%+15.4% +11.4%
1 year +93.8%+13.9% +13.1%
3 years +256.9%+49.5% +79.4%
3 years, per year +52.9%+14.3% +21.5%
5 years +155.9%+46.1% +67.7%
5 years, per year +20.7%+7.9% +10.9%
10 years +115.2%+236.7% +255.2%
10 years, per year +8.0%+12.9% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureCAKEDRISPY
Volatility, 1Y 39.7%27.9% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 39.5%28.1% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.480.16 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 2.360.50 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -43.3%-28.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -7.6%-6.7% -2.5%
52-week high $117.29$227.72 $779.14
52-week low $43.14$169.21 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCAKEDRI
P/E now vs peer median 28.3xmedian 20.6x 20.4xmedian 20.6x
P/S now vs peer median 1.4xmedian 1.1x 1.8xmedian 1.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 18.2xmedian 13.3x 12.4xmedian 13.3x
P/FCF now vs peer median 26.1xmedian 17.3x 23.4xmedian 17.3x
P/B now vs peer median 10.4xmedian 3.1x 11.6xmedian 3.1x
PEG now vs peer median 0.70median 1.04 2.36median 1.04

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCAKEDRI
Revenue $3.88B $13.37B
Gross profit – $4.46B
Operating income $204.16M $1.56B
Net income $178.62M $1.18B
Free cash flow $206.30M $1.03B
EPS (diluted) $3.68 $10.33
Cash & equivalents $195.17M $220.50M
Total debt $562.90M $2.62B
Shares (diluted) 48.49M 114.40M
Enterprise value $4.26B $23.26B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCAKEDRI
P/E 28.3x 20.4x
P/FCF 26.1x 23.4x
P/Operating cash flow 15.2x 13.4x
P/S 1.4x 1.8x
P/B 10.4x 11.6x
P/Tangible book 20.2x 33.3x
EV/EBITDA 18.2x 12.4x
EV/EBIT 28.2x 16.9x
EV/Revenue 1.5x 2.0x
EV/FCF 27.9x 25.7x
EV/Operating cash flow 16.3x 14.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.70 2.36

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCAKEDRI
Revenue growth (1Y) 5.7% 8.1%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.0% 7.5%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – -32.7%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – -7.5%
Operating income growth (1Y) 3.6% 9.1%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 24.0% 8.9%
Net income growth (1Y) 12.4% 7.5%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 23.9% 6.3%
EPS growth (1Y) 11.5% 10.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 40.6% 8.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 14.5% 0.7%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 8.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 57.2% -4.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 10.0%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCAKEDRI
Gross margin – 33.4%
EBITDA margin 8.2% 16.0%
Operating margin 5.3% 11.7%
Pretax margin 5.1% 10.2%
Net margin 4.6% 8.8%
FCF margin 5.3% 7.7%
Operating cash flow margin 9.1% 13.4%
Return on equity 36.5% 55.3%
Return on assets 5.4% 9.1%
Return on invested capital 17.1% 32.9%
Return on capital employed 7.9% 15.9%
Asset turnover 1.2x 1.0x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.0x 1.5x
Stock comp / revenue 0.7% 0.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCAKEDRI
Debt / assets 17.1% 19.8%
Debt / equity 1.1x 1.3x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.2x 1.1x
Debt / FCF 2.7x 2.5x
Liabilities / assets 84.2% 84.4%
Equity / assets 15.8% 15.6%
Interest coverage – –
Current ratio 0.6x 0.3x
Quick ratio 0.4x 0.1x
Cash ratio 0.3x 0.1x
Altman Z-score 3.08 2.46

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCAKEDRI
Dividend yield 1.1% 2.9%
Net buyback yield 0.6% 2.8%
Shareholder yield 1.7% 5.7%
Payout ratio (earnings) 31.0% –
Payout ratio (FCF) 26.8% –
Dividend growth (1Y) 4.0% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCAKEDRI
Forward P/E 25.1xFY2026 17.9xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $4.31FY2026 $11.87FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +14.3%FY2026 +11.6%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +11.8% +7.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $3.80BFY2026 $14.53BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +1.4%FY2026 +10.0%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +7.9% -3.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCAKEDRI
Held by institutions 100.0% 97.6%
Institutions holding 345 1,083
Change in shares held, QoQ -0.2% +1.9%
Institutions buying 161 578
Institutions selling 118 325
Buyers to sellers 1.36 1.78

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CAKEDRI
CAKE 1.00 0.62
DRI 0.62 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CAKE and DRI?

Darden Restaurants (DRI) is the largest by market capitalisation: Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) $5.10B, Darden Restaurants (DRI) $24.17B.

Which stock is cheaper, CAKE and DRI?

Darden Restaurants (DRI) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) 28.5x, Darden Restaurants (DRI) 20.4x). On next year's consensus earnings, Darden Restaurants (DRI) is cheapest (Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) 25.1x, Darden Restaurants (DRI) 17.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Darden Restaurants (DRI) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) +5.7%, Darden Restaurants (DRI) +8.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

Darden Restaurants (DRI) has the highest net margin (Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) 4.6%, Darden Restaurants (DRI) 8.8%). On return on invested capital, Darden Restaurants (DRI) leads (Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) 17.1%, Darden Restaurants (DRI) 32.9%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) returned the most: Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) +93.8%, Darden Restaurants (DRI) +13.9%. Over five years, Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) compounded fastest (Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) +20.7%/yr, Darden Restaurants (DRI) +7.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) 0.01%, Darden Restaurants (DRI) 0.00%. Darden Restaurants (DRI) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Darden Restaurants (DRI) has been the steadiest (Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) 39.7%, Darden Restaurants (DRI) 27.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do CAKE and DRI move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.62, a moderate positive relationship. Holding both diversifies more than two closely linked stocks would.

Which is the better stock, CAKE and DRI?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Darden Restaurants (DRI) leads on 8. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.