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Side-by-side financial comparison of Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) and Darden Restaurants (DRI). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
Darden Restaurants is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($3.1B vs $3.0B, roughly 1.0× Chipotle Mexican Grill). Chipotle Mexican Grill runs the higher net margin — 11.1% vs 7.6%, a 3.4% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Darden Restaurants posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (7.3% vs 4.9%). Chipotle Mexican Grill produced more free cash flow last quarter ($228.4M vs $119.8M). Over the past eight quarters, Chipotle Mexican Grill's revenue compounded faster (5.1% CAGR vs 2.1%).
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc., often known simply as Chipotle, is an American multinational chain of fast casual restaurants specializing in bowls, tacos, and Mission burritos made to order in front of the customer. As of December 2025, Chipotle has 4,000 locations. Its name derives from chipotle, the Nahuatl name for a smoked and dried jalapeño chili pepper.
Darden Restaurants, Inc. is an American multi-brand restaurant operator headquartered in Orlando, Florida. Darden has more than 1,800 restaurant locations and more than 175,000 employees, making it the world's largest full-service restaurant company. The company began as an extension of Red Lobster, founded by William Darden and initially backed by General Mills. Red Lobster was later sold in July 2014.
CMG vs DRI — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q2 FY2026
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $3.0B | $3.1B |
| Net Profit | $330.9M | $237.2M |
| Gross Margin | — | 18.7% |
| Operating Margin | 14.1% | 10.3% |
| Net Margin | 11.1% | 7.6% |
| Revenue YoY | 4.9% | 7.3% |
| Net Profit YoY | -0.3% | 10.3% |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.25 | $2.03 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q4 25 | $3.0B | $3.1B | ||
| Q3 25 | $3.0B | $3.0B | ||
| Q2 25 | $3.1B | $3.3B | ||
| Q1 25 | $2.9B | $3.2B | ||
| Q4 24 | $2.8B | $2.9B | ||
| Q3 24 | $2.8B | $2.8B | ||
| Q2 24 | $3.0B | $3.0B | ||
| Q1 24 | $2.7B | $3.0B |
| Q4 25 | $330.9M | $237.2M | ||
| Q3 25 | $382.1M | $257.8M | ||
| Q2 25 | $436.1M | $303.9M | ||
| Q1 25 | $386.6M | $323.4M | ||
| Q4 24 | $331.8M | $215.1M | ||
| Q3 24 | $387.4M | $207.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | $455.7M | $308.1M | ||
| Q1 24 | $359.3M | $312.9M |
| Q4 25 | — | 18.7% | ||
| Q3 25 | — | 18.9% | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 22.1% | ||
| Q1 25 | — | 21.1% | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 19.5% | ||
| Q3 24 | — | 18.8% | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 20.9% | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 20.6% |
| Q4 25 | 14.1% | 10.3% | ||
| Q3 25 | 15.9% | 11.1% | ||
| Q2 25 | 18.2% | 11.7% | ||
| Q1 25 | 16.7% | 13.2% | ||
| Q4 24 | 14.6% | 10.1% | ||
| Q3 24 | 16.9% | 9.8% | ||
| Q2 24 | 19.7% | 13.4% | ||
| Q1 24 | 16.3% | 13.0% |
| Q4 25 | 11.1% | 7.6% | ||
| Q3 25 | 12.7% | 8.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | 14.2% | 9.3% | ||
| Q1 25 | 13.4% | 10.2% | ||
| Q4 24 | 11.7% | 7.4% | ||
| Q3 24 | 13.9% | 7.5% | ||
| Q2 24 | 15.3% | 10.4% | ||
| Q1 24 | 13.3% | 10.5% |
| Q4 25 | $0.25 | $2.03 | ||
| Q3 25 | $0.29 | $2.19 | ||
| Q2 25 | $0.32 | $2.56 | ||
| Q1 25 | $0.28 | $2.74 | ||
| Q4 24 | $-12.51 | $1.82 | ||
| Q3 24 | $0.28 | $1.74 | ||
| Q2 24 | $0.33 | $2.56 | ||
| Q1 24 | $13.01 | $2.60 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $1.0B | $224.1M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $0 | $2.1B |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $2.8B | $2.1B |
| Total Assets | $9.0B | $12.9B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 0.00× | 1.03× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $1.0B | $224.1M | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.4B | $211.0M | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.5B | $240.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.4B | $224.2M | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.4B | $217.3M | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.4B | $192.5M | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.5B | $194.8M | ||
| Q1 24 | $1.4B | $243.9M |
| Q4 25 | $0 | $2.1B | ||
| Q3 25 | — | $2.1B | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $2.1B | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $2.1B | ||
| Q4 24 | $0 | $2.1B | ||
| Q3 24 | — | $1.4B | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $1.4B | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $1.4B |
| Q4 25 | $2.8B | $2.1B | ||
| Q3 25 | $3.2B | $2.2B | ||
| Q2 25 | $3.5B | $2.3B | ||
| Q1 25 | $3.5B | $2.2B | ||
| Q4 24 | $3.7B | $2.1B | ||
| Q3 24 | $3.6B | $2.1B | ||
| Q2 24 | $3.7B | $2.2B | ||
| Q1 24 | $3.4B | $2.2B |
| Q4 25 | $9.0B | $12.9B | ||
| Q3 25 | $9.3B | $12.8B | ||
| Q2 25 | $9.3B | $12.6B | ||
| Q1 25 | $9.0B | $12.6B | ||
| Q4 24 | $9.2B | $12.5B | ||
| Q3 24 | $9.0B | $11.4B | ||
| Q2 24 | $8.9B | $11.3B | ||
| Q1 24 | $8.4B | $11.4B |
| Q4 25 | 0.00× | 1.03× | ||
| Q3 25 | — | 0.96× | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 0.92× | ||
| Q1 25 | — | 0.96× | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.00× | 1.02× | ||
| Q3 24 | — | 0.65× | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 0.61× | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 0.63× |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $425.8M | $320.7M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $228.4M | $119.8M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 7.7% | 3.9% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 6.6% | 6.5% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 1.29× | 1.35× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $1.4B | $1.0B |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $425.8M | $320.7M | ||
| Q3 25 | $569.7M | $342.5M | ||
| Q2 25 | $561.3M | $457.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $557.1M | $588.2M | ||
| Q4 24 | $526.8M | $388.6M | ||
| Q3 24 | $446.5M | $273.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | $562.6M | $426.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $569.2M | $585.8M |
| Q4 25 | $228.4M | $119.8M | ||
| Q3 25 | $406.2M | $168.4M | ||
| Q2 25 | $400.7M | $285.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $412.3M | $430.1M | ||
| Q4 24 | $353.9M | $219.3M | ||
| Q3 24 | $299.0M | $128.0M | ||
| Q2 24 | $422.1M | $285.6M | ||
| Q1 24 | $436.5M | $437.4M |
| Q4 25 | 7.7% | 3.9% | ||
| Q3 25 | 13.5% | 5.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | 13.1% | 8.7% | ||
| Q1 25 | 14.3% | 13.6% | ||
| Q4 24 | 12.4% | 7.6% | ||
| Q3 24 | 10.7% | 4.6% | ||
| Q2 24 | 14.2% | 9.7% | ||
| Q1 24 | 16.2% | 14.7% |
| Q4 25 | 6.6% | 6.5% | ||
| Q3 25 | 5.4% | 5.7% | ||
| Q2 25 | 5.2% | 5.3% | ||
| Q1 25 | 5.0% | 5.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | 6.1% | 5.9% | ||
| Q3 24 | 5.3% | 5.3% | ||
| Q2 24 | 4.7% | 4.7% | ||
| Q1 24 | 4.9% | 5.0% |
| Q4 25 | 1.29× | 1.35× | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.49× | 1.33× | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.29× | 1.50× | ||
| Q1 25 | 1.44× | 1.82× | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.59× | 1.81× | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.15× | 1.32× | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.23× | 1.38× | ||
| Q1 24 | 1.58× | 1.87× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
CMG
| U.S.Segment | $2.9B | 98% |
| Chipotle Rewards | $46.1M | 2% |
| Delivery Service | $14.3M | 0% |
DRI
| Olive Garden Segment | $1.4B | 44% |
| Long Horn Steakhouse Segment | $775.9M | 25% |
| Other | $647.3M | 21% |
| Fine Dining Segment | $316.2M | 10% |
