Darden reported a strong Q4 and full-year FY2026, significantly outperforming the casual-dining industry. Management guided FY2027 same-store sales of +2.5-3.5% and EPS of $11.10-$11.35, reflecting confidence in the portfolio's resilience despite a cautious consumer. Key themes included continued share gains at Longhorn, steady Olive Garden performance, and the benefit of scale in supply chain. FY2026 Q4 total sales $3.7B, same-store sales +4.6%, adjusted EPS $3.66 (includes $0.25 from 53rd week).
Darden reported a strong Q4 and full-year FY2026, significantly outperforming the casual-dining industry. Management guided FY2027 same-store sales of +2.5-3.5% and EPS of $11.10-$11.35, reflecting confidence in the portfolio's resilience despite a cautious consumer. Key themes included continued share gains at Longhorn, steady Olive Garden performance, and the benefit of scale in supply chain. FY2026 Q4 total sales $3.7B, same-store sales +4.6%, adjusted EPS $3.66 (includes $0.25 from 53rd week).
Management expressed strong confidence after a year of significant outperformance, with positive same-restaurant sales across all brands and record performance on key occasions, and they reiterated their ability to deliver consistent long-term growth.
Guidance · revenue to $13.675B
Management raised capital spending guidance to approximately $875 million for fiscal 2027, driven by 75-80 gross new restaurant openings and 11 Bahama Breeze conversions. They noted that development costs are holding flat and that cash-on-cash returns on new units are strong.
FY2027 guidance: revenue $13.6-$13.75B, EPS $11.10-$11.35, same-store sales +2.5-3.5%.
Longhorn delivered over 7% annual same-restaurant sales growth. Management expressed strong confidence after a year of significant outperformance, with positive same-restaurant sales across all brands and record performance on key occasions, and they reiterated their ability to deliver consistent long-term growth.
Management raised capital spending guidance to approximately $875 million for fiscal 2027, driven by 75-80 gross new restaurant openings and 11 Bahama Breeze conversions. They noted that development costs are holding flat and that cash-on-cash returns on new units are strong.
Management expressed strong confidence after a year of significant outperformance, with positive same-restaurant sales across all brands and record performance on key occasions, and they reiterated their ability to deliver consistent long-term growth.
| Metric | Period | Range | Midpoint | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capex | FY2027 | $875M | $875M | GUIDED |
| EPS | FY2027 | $11.10–$11.35 | $11.22 | GUIDED |
| Revenue | FY2027 | $13.6B–$13.75B | $13.675B | GUIDED |
| Units | FY2027 | 75–80 | 77.5 | GUIDED |
| Issued | Metric | Target | Guide | Actual | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 Q3 | EPS | FY2026 | $10.57–$10.67 | $10.64 | Met / beat |
| FY2026 Q3 | EPS | FY2026 Q4 | $3.59–$3.69 | $3.66 | Met / beat |
| FY2026 Q2 | EPS | FY2026 | $10.50–$10.70 | $10.64 | Met / beat |
| FY2026 Q1 | EPS | FY2026 | $10.50–$10.70 | $10.64 | Met / beat |
Uber Direct is Darden's first-party delivery partner; the relationship is steady but not growing significantly, indicating stable demand for Uber's white-label delivery service from a large casual-dining operator.
“we continue to focus on that first party in the restaurants that we have and the brands we have with Uber Direct”
Great, thank you. I'm curious if the same-store sales guidance embeds expansion delivery, either via more brands adopting first-party or perhaps brands with first-party adopting third-party.
In regards to delivery, right now we're still focused on the brands that have first-party delivery, Olive Garden, Cheddar's, and Yardhouse. Chewy's already has third-party. In regards to third-party delivery, As we've mentioned many times, there's a few things that we don't like about third-party delivery, that model, but some have been solved. Others we'd have to see addressed before we get into that. And I'll give you some examples. Price transparency for our consumers so they know exactly what their entree costs in our restaurant versus getting a delivered. Control of the data and tips for our employees. Those are just three things. We've got others. And, you know, with the acquisition of Chewy's, we have greater insight into the third-party model and how that can impact restaurant sales, both positively and negatively. So right now, we continue to focus on that first party in the restaurants that we have and the brands we have with Uber Direct. But if third-party is ever going to be part of our business model, it must be sustainable for us in the long term. And our guidance does not contemplate any third-party delivery.