Sweetgreen, Inc.

Second-quarter revenue was $192.7 million, about 4% higher year over year. Comparable restaurant sales declined 6.2%, driven by a 2% decline in transactions and a 4.2% decline in product mix; there was no year-over-year menu price increase. Restaurant-level profit was $25.2 million, with a 13.1% margin versus 18.9% last year, and adjusted EBITDA was a loss of $200,000 versus a $6.4 million profit a year ago. The company ended the quarter with $142.6 million in cash and 287 restaurants, including 35 powered by Infinite Kitchen. For fiscal 2026, Sweetgreen now expects comparable restaurant sales to decline 8% to 7%, restaurant-level profit margin of 10.5% to 11%, and adjusted EBITDA loss of $27 million to $23 million; management said the guidance assumes a 600 to 700 basis point impact to third-quarter comps from cyclospora and embeds an estimated 200 to 300 basis points of disruption-related comp impact, 100 to 150 basis points of margin impact, and $7 million to $10 million of EBITDA impact.

Jonathan Neman framed the quarter as disappointing but said the team knows exactly where the opportunities are: better peak-period execution, more top-of-funnel awareness, and faster capture of margin opportunities. He emphasized that transaction trends improved each month of the quarter, with June flat, and said the company is beginning to see its transformation plan take hold. His tone was candid but constructive, repeatedly stressing discipline, urgency, and a return to transaction-led growth, $3 million AUVs, and margin expansion over time.

Jamie McConnell focused on the financial bridge from Q2 into the updated outlook. She cited revenue of $192.7 million, restaurant-level profit of $25.2 million, food, beverage and packaging costs at 29.8% of revenue, labor and related expenses at 29.2%, other restaurant operating expenses at 18.5%, G&A of $29.7 million, depreciation of $18.8 million, and cash of $142.6 million. She said ingredient usage and promotions drove the cost pressure, but the company expects to start realizing some efficiencies in the second half through ordering-tool improvements, waste reduction, and more demand-based scheduling; capital and cost discipline remain priorities as development stays conservative.

Analysts pressed on whether wraps are driving enough incremental traffic to offset the lower check, and management said the main issue is lower check rather than cannibalization. They also asked about the Create Your Own pricing test, and management said it is early but customer feedback is encouraging, with rollout targeted by year-end if the test continues to go well. Questions on promotions and full-price trends drew a response that the company is weaning off broad discounting and using promos more selectively on lapsed guests, while development questions were met with guidance that store openings should continue at a conservative pace as the prototype and unit economics are refined.