Shares of casual-dining chain Texas Roadhouse(NASDAQ: TXRH) went up 18.8% during February, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence. The stock's biggest move came on Feb. 16 after the company reported financial results for the fourth quarter of 2023.
Here's why the quarterly financial results were worth celebrating: Texas Roadhouse grew its Q4 revenue by 15% year over year to nearly $1.2 billion. The company didn't only grow its revenue by opening new restaurant locations; it also grew its same-store sales by 10% in 2023, which is encouraging.
The same-store-sales growth for Texas Roadhouse has an even more encouraging detail beneath the surface. Only about half of the increase was due to its raising menu prices. The other part of its growth came from higher restaurant traffic, which is the best growth metric for a restaurant company.
On the earnings call, CEO Gerald Morgan said it succinctly: "2023 was another great year for Texas Roadhouse."
Why results were particularly good for Texas Roadhouse
Texas Roadhouse is a casual-dining chain, and many of these are facing headwinds. Inflation is causing expenses such as food and labor to rise, motivating these companies to raise menu prices like Texas Roadhouse did. But consumers appear to be pushing back and eating out less at casual-dining chains.
For example, in its annual report, Applebee's and IHOP parent company Dine Brands cited research data from Black Box. Black Box says that restaurant traffic for family dining dropped in 2023. For its part, Dine also saw traffic declines.
This paints operating results from Texas Roadhouse in an even more favorable light -- it increased menu prices but still saw its restaurant traffic increase when the sector is facing headwinds. That's significant.
That's not to say that Texas Roadhouse is entirely immune from industry headwinds. Indeed, the company's earnings per share (EPS) were only up 14% year over year in 2023, hitting $4.54. This EPS growth underperformed revenue, demonstrating the struggle associated with rising expenses.
However, Texas Roadhouse's results were still good, which is why the stock was up in February.
A solid outlook for 2024
Texas Roadhouse's management expects same-store sales to climb again in 2024. That's good considering it also expects ongoing expense inflation.
Texas Roadhouse will also continue opening new restaurant locations in 2024. The company actually owns three brands: Texas Roadhouse, Bubba's 33, and Jaggers. Management expects to open 30 new locations across all three brands. For perspective, it had 741 restaurants as of Dec. 26.
Don't expect Texas Roadhouse to blow the market away with flashy, top-line growth. But the company will continue growing at a steady pace while earning a respectable profit. And that should keep the stock trending higher in the coming year as well.
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Jon Quast has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Texas Roadhouse. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
