CAVA Feels The Pinch As Gen Z Spends Less

Author: Erica Kollmann | November 05, 2025 04:31pm

CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA) released its Q3 earnings report on Tuesday, missing Wall Street's expectations on the top and bottom lines. 

T.D. Cowen analyst Andrew Charles weighed in on the quarter and what's ahead for the quick-service chain. 

• CAVA stock is down. See the real-time price action here. 

Gen Z Spending Less

The analyst pointed to persistent headwinds due to softening spending among Gen Z consumers, which make up an outsized percentage of CAVA's customer base. 

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Gen Z's wallet pressures were particularly evident in the October industry-wide slowdown which is expected to continue affecting results through at least the first quarter of 2026.​

Price Target and Estimate Reductions

The firm maintained a Buy rating, but lowered its price target for CAVA from $80 to $67 based on reduced adj. EBITDA estimates for 2025 and 2026 based on both softer same-store sales forecasts and restaurant margins. 

The updated forecasts reflect the ongoing Gen Z weakness and a more conservative pricing outlook for 2026.​

Other firms also lowered price targets for CAVA, including: 

• Keybanc maintained the stock with an Overweight rating and lowered the price target from $85 to $65.
• Stifel analyst Chris O'Cull maintained CAVA Group with a Buy and lowered the price target from $100 to $75.
• Piper Sandler analyst Brian Mullan an Overweight rating and lowered the price target from $100 to $71.
• Bernstein analyst Danilo Gargiulo maintained CAVA with an Outperform and lowered the price target from $100 to $80.
• Barclays analyst Jeffrey Bernstein maintained an Equal-Weight rating and lowered the price target from $64 to $52.

CAVA Price Action: According to data from Benzinga Pro, CAVA shares were down 2.67% at $50.32 heading into Wednesday's closing bell. 

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Photo: Shutterstock 

Posted In: CAVA