What Happened?
Shares of casual salad chain Sweetgreen (NYSE: SG) fell 7.1% in the afternoon session after the company reported disappointing fourth-quarter 2025 results and issued a weak financial forecast for 2026.
The fast-casual salad chain posted revenue of $155.2 million, a 3.5% decrease from the previous year that missed analyst estimates. A key performance metric for restaurants, same-store sales, fell sharply by 11.5%. Its GAAP loss per share of $0.42 also missed analysts' expectations and was significantly wider than the $0.25 loss per share reported in the same quarter last year. To round things off, Sweetgreen’s adjusted EBITDA guidance for 2026 of $3.5 million at the midpoint was also below Wall Street's forecast of $4.98 million.
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What Is The Market Telling Us
Sweetgreen’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 54 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The previous big move we wrote about was 4 days ago when the stock dropped 5.4% on the news that the Trump administration's announcement of new global tariffs, reignited trade policy uncertainty. The move came swiftly after the Supreme Court ruled the previous week that the president could not use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) for such duties, a decision that had initially sent markets higher. However, the administration invoked a different authority, the Trade Act of 1974, to impose a 15% global tariff for up to 150 days. The rapid reimposition of trade barriers creates significant uncertainty for companies across multiple sectors that depend on international supply chains and global trade. Investors are now weighing the potential impact of these new duties on corporate earnings and broader economic activity.
Sweetgreen is down 17.6% since the beginning of the year, and at $5.71 per share, it is trading 78.5% below its 52-week high of $26.53 from March 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Sweetgreen’s shares at the IPO in November 2021 would now be looking at an investment worth $115.29.
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