CAVA vs SBUX Stock Comparison

Cava and Starbucks Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
CAVA Cava Group, Inc.
$51.50 -0.2% 1M -19.0% 1Y
Market cap
$6.02B
P/E
98.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.22B
Div. yield
–
Quick-Service Restaurants Consumer Discretionary
2 wins
SBUX Starbucks Corp
$102.69 +8.3% 1M +19.3% 1Y
Market cap
$116.96B
P/E
59.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$38.34B
Div. yield
–
Quick-Service Restaurants Consumer Discretionary
6 wins

Head to Head

8 decided of 12

Starbucks leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Starbucks 6, Cava 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCAVASBUXLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $6.02B $116.96B SBUX
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 98.7x 59.0x SBUX
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 101.0x 41.7x SBUX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +12.2% +4.5% CAVA
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 5.0% 5.2% SBUX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 31.4% –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 2.1x –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -19.0% +19.3% SBUX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years — -2.0%/yr –
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 59.5% 27.6% SBUX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 58/100 34/100 CAVA

Percentile Scorecard

CAVASBUX

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

AxisCAVASBUX
Valuation 2 #49 of 50 6 #47 of 50
Growth 91 #5 of 47 17 #39 of 47
Profitability 42 #27 of 46 69 #15 of 46
Financial Health 96 #3 of 51 42 #30 of 51
Shareholder Returns – 34 #22 of 33
Overall 58 34
  • CAVA ranked among 53 companies in Restaurants
  • SBUX ranked among 53 companies in Restaurants

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodCAVASBUXSPY
1 month -0.2%+8.3% -0.8%
3 months -20.2%-0.9% +3.5%
6 months -45.3%+4.9% +7.0%
Year to date -12.3%+21.9% +12.2%
1 year -19.0%+19.3% +13.0%
3 years +62.8%+11.6% +86.3%
3 years, per year +17.7%+3.7% +23.1%
5 years —-9.5% +68.6%
5 years, per year —-2.0% +11.0%
10 years —+91.5% +258.0%
10 years, per year —+6.7% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureCAVASBUXSPY
Volatility, 1Y 59.5%27.6% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 54.1%25.0% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.300.53 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.320.70 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -71.1%-40.2% -25.4%
From 52-week high -47.1%-5.4% -1.8%
52-week high $97.39$108.55 $779.14
52-week low $43.59$79.60 $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.

MultipleCAVASBUX
P/E now vs peer median 98.4xmedian 20.5x 59.0xmedian 20.5x
P/S now vs peer median 4.9xmedian 1.1x 3.1xmedian 1.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 39.8xmedian 13.3x 27.3xmedian 13.3x
P/FCF now vs peer median —median 17.5x 32.1xmedian 17.5x
P/B now vs peer median 7.2xmedian 3.1x -15.3xmedian 3.1x
PEG now vs peer median 2.61median 1.07 -3.07median 1.07

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 monthsCAVASBUX
Revenue $1.22B $38.34B
Gross profit $301.99M –
Operating income $66.42M $2.98B
Net income $61.05M $1.98B
Free cash flow – $3.64B
EPS (diluted) $0.52 $1.73
Cash & equivalents $322.76M $3.45B
Total debt – $13.28B
Shares (diluted) 118.38M 1.14B
Enterprise value $4.42B $104.58B

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
MetricCAVASBUX
P/E 98.4x 59.0x
P/FCF – 32.1x
P/Operating cash flow – 23.5x
P/S 4.9x 3.1x
P/B 7.2x -15.3x
P/Tangible book 7.2x -14.9x
EV/EBITDA 39.8x 27.3x
EV/EBIT 84.0x 42.6x
EV/Revenue 4.6x 3.3x
EV/FCF – 34.8x
EV/Operating cash flow – 25.4x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.61 -3.07

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCAVASBUX
Revenue growth (1Y) 12.2% 4.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 23.5% 3.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 10.7% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 27.3% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 25.1% -24.9%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 63.5% -17.8%
Net income growth (1Y) -56.6% -24.7%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 62.8% -19.4%
EPS growth (1Y) -56.6% -24.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 37.7% -19.2%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) – 1.7%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) – -1.2%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) – 61.6%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 6.9%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCAVASBUX
Gross margin 24.8% –
EBITDA margin 11.5% 12.1%
Operating margin 5.5% 7.8%
Pretax margin 6.7% 8.0%
Net margin 5.0% 5.2%
FCF margin – 9.5%
Operating cash flow margin – 13.0%
Return on equity 7.5% –
Return on assets 4.3% 6.7%
Return on invested capital – 31.4%
Return on capital employed 5.4% 15.3%
Asset turnover 0.9x 1.3x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) – 2.5x
Stock comp / revenue – 1.0%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCAVASBUX
Debt / assets – 46.9%
Debt / equity – -1.7x
Net debt / EBITDA – 2.1x
Debt / FCF – 3.6x
Liabilities / assets 43.9% 127.1%
Equity / assets 56.1% -27.1%
Interest coverage – 5.4x
Current ratio 2.5x 0.8x
Quick ratio 2.4x 0.5x
Cash ratio 2.3x 0.4x
Altman Z-score 6.47 3.13

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCAVASBUX
Dividend yield – 2.4%
Net buyback yield – -0.1%
Shareholder yield – 2.4%
Payout ratio (earnings) – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – –
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.

ConsensusCAVASBUX
Forward P/E 101.0xFY2026 41.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $0.51FY2026 $2.46FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -5.6%FY2026 +15.5%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +49.0% +21.5%
Revenue, next fiscal year $1.43BFY2026 $35.66BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +20.9%FY2026 -4.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +31.4% +5.4%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCAVASBUX
Held by institutions 89.4% 85.6%
Institutions holding 541 2,399
Change in shares held, QoQ -6.7% +4.9%
Institutions buying 245 1,096
Institutions selling 209 991
Buyers to sellers 1.17 1.11

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.

CAVASBUX
CAVA 1.00 0.36
SBUX 0.36 1.00

Add a Peer

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CAVA and SBUX?

Starbucks (SBUX) is the largest by market capitalisation: Cava (CAVA) $6.02B, Starbucks (SBUX) $116.96B.

Which stock is cheaper, CAVA and SBUX?

Starbucks (SBUX) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Cava (CAVA) 98.7x, Starbucks (SBUX) 59.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, Starbucks (SBUX) is cheapest (Cava (CAVA) 101.0x, Starbucks (SBUX) 41.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Cava (CAVA) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Cava (CAVA) +12.2%, Starbucks (SBUX) +4.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Starbucks (SBUX) has the highest net margin (Cava (CAVA) 5.0%, Starbucks (SBUX) 5.2%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Starbucks (SBUX) returned the most: Cava (CAVA) -19.0%, Starbucks (SBUX) +19.3%. Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Starbucks (SBUX) has been the steadiest (Cava (CAVA) 59.5%, Starbucks (SBUX) 27.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do CAVA and SBUX move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.36, a weak relationship. Holding both diversifies more than two closely linked stocks would.

Which is the better stock, CAVA and SBUX?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Starbucks (SBUX) leads on 6. 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.