Coffee chain Dutch Bros (NYSE:BROS) met Wall Street’s revenue expectations in Q3 2026, with revenue up 29.8% year on year to $549.8 million. On the other hand, the company’s full-year revenue guidance of $2.1 billion at the midpoint came in 1.5% below analysts’ consensus estimates. Its GAAP profit of $0.20 per share was in line with analysts’ consensus estimates.
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Dutch Bros (BROS) Q3 2026 highlights:
- Revenue $549.8 million vs S&P analysts’ consensus estimates of $548.8 million (29.8% year-on-year growth, in line)
- EPS (GAAP) $0.20 vs analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 (in line)
- Adjusted EBITDA $101.1 million vs analysts’ consensus estimates of $97.47 million (18.4% margin, 3.7% beat)
- Revenue guidance The company dropped its revenue guidance for the full year to $2.1 billion at the midpoint from $2.12 billion, a 0.7% decrease
- EBITDA guidance $380 million at the midpoint for the full year, below analysts’ consensus estimates of $387.5 million
- Operating margin 9.6%, in line with the same quarter last year
- Locations 1,273 at quarter end, up from 1,081 in the same quarter last year
- Same-store sales rose 4.4% year on year (5.7% in the same quarter last year)
- Market capitalization $6.01 billion
Christine Barone, Chief Executive Officer and President of Dutch Bros, said, “Dutch Bros continues to gain share in the high-growth beverage category. In the third quarter, we achieved our fourteenth consecutive quarter of positive same shop sales and ninth consecutive quarter of same shop customer visit growth. This is a testament to the strength of our brand, our differentiated people-led culture, and our strategic focus on expanding customer occasions.”
Revenue growth
Examining a company’s long-term performance can provide clues about its quality. Any business can experience short-term success, but top-performing ones enjoy sustained growth for years.
With $2.01 billion in revenue over the past 12 months, Dutch Bros is a mid-sized restaurant chain, which sometimes brings disadvantages compared to larger competitors benefiting from better brand awareness and economies of scale. On the positive side, it can still post high growth rates because it’s working from a smaller revenue base.
Dutch Bros grew its revenue at an impressive 36.4% compounded annual growth rate over the last seven years as it opened new restaurants and increased revenue at existing, established dining locations.
This quarter, Dutch Bros’s year-on-year revenue growth of 29.8% was strong, and its $549.8 million in revenue was in line with Wall Street’s consensus estimates.
Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 26.2% over the next 12 months, according to S&P, a deceleration versus the last seven years. Still, that is a high projected growth rate and implies the market sees success for its menu offerings.
Restaurant performance
Number of restaurants
A restaurant chain’s total number of dining locations often determines how much revenue it can generate.
Dutch Bros operated 1,273 locations in the latest quarter. It has opened new restaurants at a rapid pace over the last two years, averaging 16.1% annual growth, much faster than the broader restaurant sector. This gives it a chance to become a large-scale business over time.
When a chain opens new restaurants, it usually means it’s investing for growth because there’s healthy demand for its meals and there are markets where its concepts have few or no locations.
Same-store sales
A company’s restaurant base only paints one part of the picture. When demand is high, it makes sense to open more. But when demand is low, it’s prudent to close some locations and use the money in other ways. The same-store sales metric provides insight into this topic because it measures organic growth at restaurants open for at least a year.
Dutch Bros has been one of the most successful restaurant chains over the last two years thanks to rising demand at its existing locations. On average, the company has posted strong year-on-year same-store sales growth of 6.2%. This performance, along with its substantial expansion of new restaurants, suggests it is pursuing growth aggressively.
In the latest quarter, Dutch Bros’s same-store sales rose 4.4% year on year. This growth was a deceleration from its historical levels, showing the business is still performing well but losing some momentum.
Key takeaways from Dutch Bros’s Q3 results
Dutch Bros topped analysts’ consensus EBITDA expectations for Q3, but its full-year outlook fell short: Revenue guidance slightly missed consensus, and EBITDA guidance also came in below Wall Street’s consensus estimates. The earnings beat was a positive, but the quarter overall could have been better. Shares plunged 18.2% to $35.92 immediately after the results.
Dutch Bros underperformed this quarter. The latest quarter matters, but not nearly as much as longer-term fundamentals and valuation when deciding whether to buy the stock. For more on Dutch Bros, read our full research report here (it’s free).