Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurants. It sells food and beverages through offering burritos, burrito bowls, quesadillas, tacos, and salads. The company also provides delivery and related services its app and website. It has operations in the United States, Canada, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Newport Beach, California.

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc.

In the latest trading session, Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) closed at $34.87, marking a +2.74% move from the previous day. The stock's change was more than the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.21%. At the same time, the Dow added 1.35%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.26%.
Coming into today, shares of the Mexican food chain had gained 8.37% in the past month. In that same time, the Retail-Wholesale sector lost 1.1%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.89%.
Market participants will be closely following the financial results of Chipotle Mexican Grill in its upcoming release. The company plans to announce its earnings on February 3, 2026. On that day, Chipotle Mexican Grill is projected to report earnings of $0.24 per share, which would represent a year-over-year decline of 4%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $2.98 billion, up 4.91% from the year-ago period.
CMG's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $1.16 per share and revenue of $11.94 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of +3.57% and +5.51%, respectively.
It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for Chipotle Mexican Grill. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. As a result, upbeat changes in estimates indicate analysts' favorable outlook on the business health and profitability.
Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.
The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 0.61% lower. Right now, Chipotle Mexican Grill possesses a Zacks Rank of #4 (Sell).
Investors should also note Chipotle Mexican Grill's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 29.24. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 20.05, which means Chipotle Mexican Grill is trading at a premium to the group.
Investors should also note that CMG has a PEG ratio of 3.47 right now. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Retail - Restaurants industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 2.23 as of yesterday's close.
The Retail - Restaurants industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 189, putting it in the bottom 24% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Ensure to harness Zacks.com to stay updated with all these stock-shifting metrics, among others, in the next trading sessions.
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Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) Beats Stock Market Upswing: What Investors Need to Know

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Market Volatility and Opportunities

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. CMG is entering 2026 with a heightened focus on digital execution as management seeks to stabilize traffic amid a softer consumer backdrop. Digital sales represented 36.7% of revenue in the third quarter, yet order accuracy in this channel weakened due to incentive structures that overemphasized speed. This misalignment became more consequential as frequency declined among guests earning under $100,000 — a demographic that accounts for roughly 40% of sales and has demonstrated increased sensitivity to budget pressures and discretionary spending.
To address this, Chipotle is restructuring its digital performance framework around three core metrics: accurate orders, on-time fulfillment and abundant quality. Management emphasized that while restaurant-level execution continued to improve, digital order preparation lagged and ultimately weighed on repeat usage. The company pointed to the effectiveness of past engagement initiatives such as Chipotle IQ, Summer of Extras and Freepotle, all of which drove increased activity when the digital experience remained reliable. As Chipotle prepares to roll out a more robust cadence of menu innovations in 2026, improving digital accuracy is positioned as a foundational requirement to fully leverage these programs.
This refined digital strategy is part of a broader shift toward more measured, data-driven operational adjustments. Management stated that changes to digital workflows and incentive structures will be tested within smaller restaurant groups before broader deployment, allowing the company to assess consumer response and refine processes in real time. This approach mirrors Chipotle’s ongoing investments in throughput, kitchen efficiency and menu expansion, each aimed at reinforcing value, consistency and guest satisfaction during a period marked by uneven consumer demand.
Looking ahead, the company views a stronger, more reliable digital ecosystem as a crucial lever for re-engaging light users and improving overall frequency. With menu innovation accelerating and customer expectations rising in off-premise channels, Chipotle’s recalibration of its digital framework represents a proactive move to support demand health in a challenging environment. By tightening execution and aligning incentives with customer priorities, the brand is positioning its digital channel to play a more meaningful role in its 2026 growth agenda.
How Are Competitors Faring?
As Chipotle works to rebuild digital accuracy and strengthen app engagement, competitors like McDonald's Corporation MCD and Starbucks Corporation SBUX are leaning on digital reliability and high-visibility engagement engines to sustain momentum in a value-conscious consumer landscape.
McDonald’s is driving digital traffic through national value and large-scale promotions, with management noting that Extra Value Meals now account for roughly 30% of U.S. transactions and the fully digital MONOPOLY event stands as one of its strongest customer-acquisition drivers. With 45 million 90-day active users, McDonald’s is using value-led bundles and app-based promotions to re-engage price-sensitive guests — a cohort Chipotle has seen soften. This combination of digital scale and sharpened value positioning is helping McDonald’s protect traffic despite a cautious consumer backdrop.
Starbucks, meanwhile, is pushing operational consistency as its digital differentiator, highlighting that over 80% of U.S. stores now hit 4-minute service times following the rollout of Green Apron Service and Smart Queue sequencing. Management also emphasized that Mobile Order & Pay remains highly accurate and on time, supporting nearly 30% year-over-year growth in delivery and expanding its 34.2 million 90-day active Rewards base. By prioritizing precision, throughput and fulfillment speed, Starbucks has rebuilt credibility in a channel where reliability directly influences repeat behavior.
Together, McDonald’s and Starbucks demonstrate how operational discipline and digital dependability can reinforce engagement during a soft consumer cycle — a playbook Chipotle is now moving to replicate as it tightens accuracy and rebuilds frequency heading into 2026.
CMG’s Stock Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Shares of Chipotle have plunged 47.9% in the past year compared with the industry’s fall of 13.2%.
CMG One-Year Price Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, CMG trades at a forward price-to-sales (P/S) multiple of 3.42, above the industry’s average of 3.22.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CMG’s 2026 earnings implies a year-over-year uptick of 4.7%. The earnings per share estimates for 2026 have declined in the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
CMG stock currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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Will CMG's App Engagement Efforts Boost Frequency Heading Into 2026?

SoundHound AI (NASDAQ: SOUN) has become one of the hottest stocks on Wall Street, rising around 170% since the start of November 2024. However, it's well off the peaks of its huge run, as it was up nearly 400% at the end of December.
With SoundHound shares down more than 40% from their all-time high, many investors may wonder whether this stock could be primed for another huge run. Some may even consider this stock a ticket to becoming a millionaire.
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So, does this stock have the capability to do it? After all, one other artificial intelligence (AI) stock has already made many investors millionaires.
Its software could find use in many industries
Becoming a millionaire from one stock pick may seem like a far-fetched dream to some people, but it is entirely possible. If you invested $10,000 in Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) stock a decade ago, you would now have $2.55 million, as long as you held on and never sold.Is it possible that SoundHound could have that kind of upside? Let's take a look.
SoundHound AI's software is all about audio recognition and using that input for an AI model. Most of the generative AI models we've interacted with so far use text inputs. However, users must have access to a keyboard for this to work. That's not always a practical application.
Some customers may prefer talking to a voice (think of a drive-thru at a restaurant) or need to probe an AI assistant while driving (even if the car is fully self-driving, do you really want a keyboard in the vehicle?). This is where SoundHound's technology comes in, and it has already landed some big clients.
SoundHound's software has already been integrated into Stellantis vehicles in Europe and Japan. This is a massive auto brand, and if this technology becomes a hit, it's very likely that other automakers will partner with SoundHound as well. Many restaurants have also partnered with SoundHound to deploy its technology to integrate AI in drive-thrus and online order-taking.
All this has allowed SoundHound to develop a diversified revenue stream, where none of the sectors in its business (automotive, restaurants, financial services, healthcare, and insurance) makes up more than 25% of the total. That's a key improvement, as 72% of revenue came from one client in the automotive sector during last year's third quarter (presumably Stellantis).
SoundHound also has huge growth aspirations. It expects revenue to double in 2024, and to double again in 2025, with preliminary guidance coming in at $165 million in sales (compared to $83 million in 2024). That's massive growth, and it also sees fantastic revenue growth beyond that point.
A company's booking backlog describes the value remaining on current contracts it has signed. While this is not guaranteed revenue, it gives investors an idea of how much growth they can expect moving forward. SoundHound's backlog now exceeds $1 billion and is spread out over a six-year timeframe. That's strong projected revenue, and as the use cases for its technology increase, this backlog figure will likely rise.
The stock would need to reach unprecedented levels
But is that enough to make you a millionaire?
First, we need to set a base investment amount. We'll use $10,000 because that's what I used in the Nvidia example above. To turn $10,000 into $1 million, a stock needs to rise 100 times in value. Currently, SoundHound is a $5.4 billion company, which means it would be valued at around $540 billion if it achieved that feat.
So, what companies are valued at that threshold right now? That would put SoundHound in the same valuation range as Mastercard ($515 billion) and Oracle ($496 billion). Those are incredibly dominant companies that serve the whole globe, so this may be an unrealistic expectation.
For further comparison, some of the largest software companies in the market right now are Salesforce ($310 billion) and Adobe ($199 billion). SoundHound's current revenue looks like a rounding error for these companies, even if its strong 2025 growth is incorporated.
So, is SoundHound likely to make you a millionaire from a $10,000 investment? Probably not. But that doesn't mean it can't be a good investment. It has a strong product offering and is tackling an important niche in AI integration throughout society. It has strong growth ahead, but there are still a lot of risks involved in the stock, as other companies could easily offer an audio recognition platform that rivals SoundHound's.
If you decide to invest in SoundHound, understand there's a high risk, but if it works out, there's also a high reward.
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Keithen Drury has positions in Adobe, Mastercard, Nvidia, and Salesforce. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Adobe, Mastercard, Nvidia, Oracle, and Salesforce. The Motley Fool recommends Stellantis. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Is SoundHound AI Stock Your Ticket to Becoming a Millionaire?

For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – December 10, 2025 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: NVIDIA Corp. NVDA, SoundHound AI, Inc. SOUN, Mastercard Inc. MA and Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. CMG.
Here are highlights from Tuesday’s Analyst Blog:
SoundHound vs. NVIDIA: Which AI Stock Should You Buy Before 2026?
The artificial intelligence (AI) boom has helped NVIDIA Corp.’s shares gain traction this year, while a smaller player, SoundHound AI, Inc., despite a strong 2024 performance, saw its stock stumble. What caused the decline, can it bounce back, and how does it compare with NVIDIA from an investment perspective ahead of the new year? Let’s take a closer look –
SoundHound Gets a Boost From Growing AI Platform Adoption
SoundHound’s products have gained popularity among clients in industries such as finance and restaurants. Its Houndify platform, which enables companies to build customized AI voice recognition solutions, is now being adopted by card issuers, such as Mastercard Inc. and restaurant chains like Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. SoundHound’s voice AI platform is also being adopted by automakers like Stellantis.
SoundHound’s Amelia platform is also gaining prominence, allowing companies to develop AI agents that increase employee productivity and improve customer service. Recently, SoundHound secured a significant agreement with a U.S.-based regional hospital system to implement the Amelia platform. Overall, the rising demand for SoundHound’s products is driving the company’s revenue growth.
SoundHound’s revenues for the third quarter reached $42 million, up 68% year over year, according to investors.soundhound.com. Management expects SoundHound to benefit from the surge in enterprise AI adoption, projecting full-year revenues between $165 million and $180 million, up from an earlier outlook of $160 million to $178 million.
NVIDIA Overcomes AI Bubble Fears With Stellar Q3 Performance
NVIDIA’s fiscal third-quarter 2026 revenue growth dismisses AI bubble concerns. Strong demand for its advanced Blackwell chips and cloud graphics processing units (GPUs) helped NVIDIA report revenues of $57 billion for the quarter, up 62% from the previous year and 22% sequentially, according to investor.nvidia.com.
NVIDIA’s data center revenues soared 66% year over year to $51.2 billion for the quarter, while gaming revenues jumped 30% to $4.3 billion. Additionally, NVIDIA’s competitive edge in the AI hardware market is expected to fuel growth, with management projecting revenues for the fiscal fourth quarter of 2026 to reach $65 billion, with a 2% margin of error.
Looking ahead, NVIDIA recently received approval from the Trump administration to ship its H200 AI processors to “approved customers” in China. This marks a strategic win for NVIDIA, which has been lobbying Congress to ease export restrictions and enhance its sales.
SoundHound or NVIDIA: Which AI Stock Should You Pick for 2026?
Both SoundHound and NVIDIA demonstrate strong revenue growth prospects. However, SoundHound’s efforts to attract customers through aggressive investments are increasing operating costs, leading to losses and a decline in its stock.
SoundHound’s GAAP net loss for the third quarter was $109.3 million, while non-GAAP net loss was $13 million. In contrast, NVIDIA continues to generate strong profits, with fiscal third-quarter 2026 net income reaching $31.91 billion, up from $19.31 billion a year ago. And it's solely because of its strong presence in the AI hardware as well as software market.
Additionally, NVIDIA is demonstrating solid financial strength, having returned $37 billion to shareholders via share repurchases and cash dividends during the first nine months of fiscal 2026. Therefore, it’s prudent for savvy investors to invest in NVIDIA rather than SoundHound as the new year approaches.
For now, NVIDIA has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), whereas SoundHound has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks Rank #1 stocks here.
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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
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Want to be tipped off early to our 10 top picks for the entirety of 2026? History suggests their performance could be sensational.
From 2012 (when our Director of Research Sheraz Mian assumed responsibility for the portfolio) through November, 2025, the Zacks Top 10 Stocks gained +2,530.8%, more than QUADRUPLING the S&P 500’s +570.3%.
Now Sheraz is combing through 4,400 companies to handpick the best 10 tickers to buy and hold in 2026. Don’t miss your chance to get in on these stocks when they’re released on January 5.
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SoundHound AI, Inc. (SOUN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights NVIDIA, SoundHound, Mastercard and Chipotle Mexican Grill

The artificial intelligence (AI) boom has helped NVIDIA Corporation’s NVDA shares gain traction this year, while a smaller player, SoundHound AI, Inc. SOUN, despite a strong 2024 performance, saw its stock stumble. What caused the decline, can it bounce back, and how does it compare with NVIDIA from an investment perspective ahead of the new year? Let’s take a closer look –
SoundHound Gets a Boost From Growing AI Platform Adoption
SoundHound’s products have gained popularity among clients in industries such as finance and restaurants. Its Houndify platform, which enables companies to build customized AI voice recognition solutions, is now being adopted by card issuers, such as Mastercard Incorporated MA and restaurant chains like Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. CMG. SoundHound’s voice AI platform is also being adopted by automakers like Stellantis.
SoundHound’s Amelia platform is also gaining prominence, allowing companies to develop AI agents that increase employee productivity and improve customer service. Recently, SoundHound secured a significant agreement with a U.S.-based regional hospital system to implement the Amelia platform. Overall, the rising demand for SoundHound’s products is driving the company’s revenue growth.
SoundHound’s revenues for the third quarter reached $42 million, up 68% year over year, according to investors.soundhound.com. Management expects SoundHound to benefit from the surge in enterprise AI adoption, projecting full-year revenues between $165 million and $180 million, up from an earlier outlook of $160 million to $178 million.
NVIDIA Overcomes AI Bubble Fears With Stellar Q3 Performance
NVIDIA’s fiscal third-quarter 2026 revenue growth dismisses AI bubble concerns. Strong demand for its advanced Blackwell chips and cloud graphics processing units (GPUs) helped NVIDIA report revenues of $57 billion for the quarter, up 62% from the previous year and 22% sequentially, according to investor.nvidia.com.
NVIDIA’s data center revenues soared 66% year over year to $51.2 billion for the quarter, while gaming revenues jumped 30% to $4.3 billion. Additionally, NVIDIA’s competitive edge in the AI hardware market is expected to fuel growth, with management projecting revenues for the fiscal fourth quarter of 2026 to reach $65 billion, with a 2% margin of error.
Looking ahead, NVIDIA recently received approval from the Trump administration to ship its H200 AI processors to “approved customers” in China. This marks a strategic win for NVIDIA, which has been lobbying Congress to ease export restrictions and enhance its sales.
SoundHound or NVIDIA: Which AI Stock Should You Pick for 2026?
Both SoundHound and NVIDIA demonstrate strong revenue growth prospects. However, SoundHound’s efforts to attract customers through aggressive investments are increasing operating costs, leading to losses and a decline in its stock.
SoundHound’s GAAP net loss for the third quarter was $109.3 million, while non-GAAP net loss was $13 million. In contrast, NVIDIA continues to generate strong profits, with fiscal third-quarter 2026 net income reaching $31.91 billion, up from $19.31 billion a year ago. And it's solely because of its strong presence in the AI hardware as well as software market.
Additionally, NVIDIA is demonstrating solid financial strength, having returned $37 billion to shareholders via share repurchases and cash dividends during the first nine months of fiscal 2026. Therefore, it’s prudent for savvy investors to invest in NVIDIA rather than SoundHound as the new year approaches.
For now, NVIDIA has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), whereas SoundHound has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks Rank #1 stocks here.
Zacks Naming Top 10 Stocks for 2026
Want to be tipped off early to our 10 top picks for the entirety of 2026? History suggests their performance could be sensational.
From 2012 (when our Director of Research Sheraz Mian assumed responsibility for the portfolio) through November, 2025, the Zacks Top 10 Stocks gained +2,530.8%, more than QUADRUPLING the S&P 500’s +570.3%.
Now Sheraz is combing through 4,400 companies to handpick the best 10 tickers to buy and hold in 2026. Don’t miss your chance to get in on these stocks when they’re released on January 5.
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SoundHound AI, Inc. (SOUN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

SoundHound Vs. NVIDIA: Which AI Stock Should You Buy Before 2026?

McDonald’s Corporation MCD is sharpening its focus on beverages as a potential catalyst for a stronger U.S. performance in 2026. The category presents a compelling opportunity because beverages carry attractive margins, drive incremental traffic and fit naturally into multiple dayparts. With the company looking for new levers to boost U.S. momentum amid a more cautious consumer, this strategic lane is emerging at the right time. The ongoing beverage test is designed not as a branding exercise, but as a structural growth initiative aligned with evolving consumer preferences for cold coffees, refreshers, crafted sodas and functional drink options.
In the third quarter of 2025, the company highlighted beverages as a global category exceeding $100 billion and expanding faster than the broader informal eating-out industry. This context underscores why the U.S. test across more than 500 restaurants in Colorado and Wisconsin matters. Early performance is running ahead of expectations, supported by strong customer satisfaction scores, incremental occasions across dayparts and a lift in average check — all indicators that the platform can scale effectively within existing operations. The company noted that learnings from the CosMc’s format helped refine product lineup and complexity, enabling a broader beverage range without straining kitchen efficiency.
Although the consumer environment remains pressured, U.S. comparable sales increased 2.4% in the third quarter. With traffic from lower-income customers under strain and inflation, particularly beef inflation, remaining elevated, the U.S. business will require new growth drivers to reaccelerate into 2026. A successfully executed beverage platform offers a pathway to unlock incremental traffic without heavy reliance on pricing actions.
The company is also emphasizing disciplined pricing within the beverage test, aiming to differentiate through value relative to competing drink-led concepts while still supporting margins. If these results continue to hold, the beverage initiative could strengthen the company’s growth algorithm by broadening its relevance, deepening digital engagement and supporting higher unit economics. As the U.S. business navigates a complex backdrop, beverages may become a meaningful lever in reigniting momentum heading into 2026.
MCD Stock’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Shares of McDonald's have gained 6.4% so far this year against the industry’s decline of 10%. In the same time frame, other industry players like Starbucks Corporation SBUX, Sweetgreen, Inc. SG and Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. CMG have lost 6.7%, 78.5% and 43.5%, respectively.
MCD YTD Price Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, MCD trades at a forward price-to-sales (P/S) multiple of 7.82, above the industry’s average of 3.27. Conversely, industry players, such as Starbucks, Sweetgreen and Chipotle, have P/S multiples of 2.48, 1.06 and 3.47, respectively.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MCD’s 2026 earnings per share has declined 0.7% in the past 30 days to $13.27.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The company is likely to report strong earnings, with projections indicating a 9.6% rise in 2026. Conversely, industry players like Sweetgreen and Chipotle are likely to witness an increase of 15.5% and 4.9%, respectively, year over year, in 2026 earnings. Meanwhile, Starbucks' fiscal 2026 earnings are likely to witness a rise of 12.7% year over year.
MCD currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Will McDonald's Beverage Strategy Reignite Its 2026 U.S. Momentum?

Dutch Bros Inc. BROS is entering its next stage of development with a materially stronger expansion engine, supported by a pipeline that has scaled more quickly than at any point in the company’s history. While same-shop sales and transaction trends continue to shape near-term performance, the depth and velocity of the company’s site approvals are emerging as a central indicator of its medium-term growth capacity.
Over the past six months, Dutch Bros has approved 30-plus potential sites per month, a pace that reflects expanded real estate capabilities, improved planning tools and more structured market evaluation processes. This level of consistency is notable, especially as the company prepares for an accelerated buildout schedule. Management reiterated plans for approximately 175 system shop openings in 2026, positioning Dutch Bros to advance toward its stated long-term target of 2,029 locations by 2029.
Operational execution in new markets continues to support this trajectory. With 38 new shops opened, pushing the system count to 1,081, the company highlighted “consistently long lines and strong customer demand” across the Midwest and Southeast. These markets represent the next wave of geographic expansion and are critical for demonstrating brand portability beyond its legacy footprint.
Still, several variables could influence the growth cadence as the company moves into 2026. Management noted that coffee cost inflation is rising and may remain elevated into next year, with potential implications for shop-level profitability. Labor costs are also set to increase, particularly in California, where regulatory changes are expected to contribute approximately 50 basis points of pressure. In addition, pre-opening expenses have increased as more shops come online in new and developing trade areas where training teams are required.
Even with these pressures, the company’s development posture reflects a more structured, analytics-driven approach to scaling its footprint. A larger and faster-moving pipeline, improved capital efficiency and steady demand across new regions suggest that Dutch Bros is building the operational foundation required to support its targeted pace of expansion.
BROS’ Stock Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Shares of Dutch Bros have gained 11.3% so far this year against the industry’s fall of 7%. In the same time frame, other industry players like Starbucks Corporation SBUX, Sweetgreen, Inc. SG and Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. CMG have declined 7%, 79.3% and 43.6%, respectively.
BROS YTD Price Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, BROS trades at a forward price-to-sales (P/S) multiple of 4.86, above the industry’s average of 3.50. Meanwhile, industry players, such as Starbucks, Sweetgreen and Chipotle, have P/S multiples of 2.53, 1.03 and 3.46, respectively.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BROS’ 2026 earnings per share has remained unchanged at 86 cents in the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The company is likely to report strong earnings, with projections indicating a 27.6% rise in 2026. Industry players like Sweetgreen and Chipotle are likely to witness an increase of 15.5% and 4.9%, respectively, year over year, in 2026 earnings. Meanwhile, Starbucks' 2026 earnings are expected to rise 13.6% year over year.
BROS stock currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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BROS' Expansion Pipeline Surges: Will the Growth Last in 2026?

Key Points
The Trade Desk, Duolingo, and Chipotle have plummeted 45% to 70% this year.
Growth has slowed at The Trade Desk, but it's finally trading at a forward P/E ratio in the high teens.
Duolingo has grown its business by more than 40%, and premium engagement is improving.
You're probably scrolling through actual retailer Black Friday deals as you ponder the different ways to rework your Thanksgiving leftovers. However, a lot of stocks that you probably know are also on sale. The Trade Desk (NASDAQ: TTD), Duolingo (NASDAQ: DUOL), and Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) are all trading at least 40% off this year.
It's been a rough year for their shareholders, but you might be able to take advantage of downticks. Let's go over why these stocks -- trading at compelling entry prices after a brutal 2025 -- can be the real Black Friday sales that you should be looking at right now.
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1. The Trade Desk: Down 70%
One of the market's biggest gainers through its first eight years as a public company has proven mortal in 2025. The Trade Desk has lost more than two-thirds of its value, as growth has slowed for the adtech leader.
The top dog in programmatic advertising is still moving in the right direction at a reasonably healthy clip. Revenue has risen 20% through the first nine months of this year, climbing a better-than-expected 18% in its latest quarter. Its bottom line is growing even faster, as its net income margin is widening in 2025.
The Trade Desk isn't broken, no matter what the one-year stock chart may be telling you. There have been some integration hiccups as The Trade Desk migrates users to its artificial intelligence (AI)-fueled Kokai platform, but the numbers don't lie. Customer retention continues to clock in north of 95%, the way it has over the past 11 years. The Trade continues to gain market share.
Competitive challenges are a near-term headwind. Amazon is heating up as a legitimate demand-side platform to rival The Trade Desk, aggressively pushing its connected TV marketing solutions. It's not weighing on The Trade Desk as heavily as the stock's action may suggest.
The Trade Desk's guidance calls for revenue to rise by at least 13% in the fourth quarter, but let's rewind three months. The Trade Desk was only eyeing 14% top-line growth for the third quarter, ultimately landing 400 basis points higher. Analyst updated were largely positive, as many Wall Street pros see growth reaccelerating by the springtime of next year. In the meantime, you can buy shares of The Trade Desk for just 19 times forward earnings.
2. Duolingo: Down 46%
Growth is also slowing for Duolingo, but it's relative. After four years of sharply decelerating top-line jumps, Duolingo's year-over-year growth has still topped 41% in back-to-back quarters. The developer of the popular language-learning app still saw its stock take a hit following its latest report on concerns of near-term results.
Bookings guidance came in weak. Duolingo is emphasizing product development in the coming year, potentially at the risk of user growth. Bears will argue that AI is a threat to Duolingo, but it's investing heavily on that front to make sure it stays on top.
Its audience continues to grow. The app is drawing 135 million monthly active users. The latest module on its learning platform -- chess -- has overtaken math and music in popularity, but it's not the best-in-class option on the market. Among premium accounts, family accounts have grown to 29% of the mix. This is encouraging to see, as an entirely family is less likely to cancel than individual users. There are some wrinkles here, but Duolingo stock is trading for 23 times forward earnings. This is a big discount to its historically higher growth rate.
3. Chipotle: Down 45%
The growing pains are more pronounced at Chipotle than at The Trade Desk and Duolingo. The burrito roller has cranked out three consecutive quarters of single-digit revenue growth, including negative domestic comps in back-to-back reports.
The slowdown isn't a Chipotle-specific problem. Many restaurant chains are struggling in the current climate with consumer sentiment easing. There's still an opportunity for a leader -- and Chipotle remains a leader in the emerging fast casual space -- to grow in this environment as weaker players fold like the aluminum foil wrapping your burrito. Chipotle expects to accelerate its store openings next year, growing its empire by 10%. That alone will mean a return to double-digit revenue growth if it can get comps to move north of zero.
Hungry for a dinner bell? Chipotle stock is trading at its lowest free cash flow multiple in 14 years. This means that the stock is even cheaper than it was during during the foodborne illness outbreaks that took place between 2015 and 2018. It may take a few quarters for the turnaround to take place, but by then the shares will likely be higher than they are now.
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Rick Munarriz has positions in Duolingo and The Trade Desk. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Duolingo, and The Trade Desk. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: short December 2025 $45 calls on Chipotle Mexican Grill. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Index	Bulls	Bears
Confidence		—
Support		—
Cash flows		—

	S/L 5%RUB 33.13	S/L 10%RUB 31.38	S/L 15%RUB 29.64
Day	14.08%	0.25%	0.00%
Week	51.01%	17.60%	3.69%
Month	74.79%	50.91%	30.85%

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc.

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