Restaurant Stock Performance Amid Inflation

Darden Restaurants ($DRI) misses Q1 EPS by $0.03 as beef inflation and higher marketing spend squeeze margins despite solid same-restaurant sales

Winners

Uber Technologies ($UBER) — Olive Garden’s Uber Direct partnership is boosting first-party delivery; if Darden scales this across brands, Uber’s order volume and enterprise delivery revenue benefit.

Domino’s Pizza ($DPZ) — Consumers shifting toward at-home, value-focused meals favor Domino’s carryout and bundle offers versus pricier casual dining.

Wingstop ($WING) — Beef inflation pressures steak-centric competitors, making chicken-led concepts relatively more attractive on price; Wingstop’s asset-light model can leverage that traffic.

McDonald’s ($MCD) — Aggressive value platforms capture trade-down from casual dining as households look to stretch budgets.

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