Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) executives used the company’s fiscal fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings call to emphasize the scale potential of its franchised model, the system-wide rollout of its Smart Kitchen platform, and plans for a national loyalty launch in 2026. Management acknowledged a challenging consumer environment that contributed to the company’s first same-store sales decline in 22 years, while pointing to unit growth, margin performance, and early operational “proof points” as key drivers of confidence heading into 2026.
2025 results: unit growth offset by negative comps
CEO Michael Skipworth said 2025 “showcased the resiliency” of Wingstop’s “asset-light, highly franchised model” and reiterated a long-term opportunity to scale to more than 10,000 restaurants globally. Wingstop ended 2025 with more than 3,000 restaurants and opened 493 restaurants globally during the year, including more than 100 outside the U.S. System-wide sales grew 12% in 2025 to “over $5 billion,” despite a 3% decline in same-store sales.
On profitability, Kaleida said adjusted EBITDA rose about 10% in Q4 to $61.9 million, while adjusted earnings per diluted share increased 5% to $1.00. He noted the quarter included a $0.18 per share impact from higher interest expense tied to a $500 million securitization transaction completed at the end of 2024.
Smart Kitchen rollout complete; focus shifts to execution
Skipworth framed 2025 as “transformational,” citing the national rollout of the Wingstop Smart Kitchen—an AI-enabled operating platform intended to improve speed and consistency. He said the company installed Smart Kitchen in all domestic restaurants by the end of 2025 after targeting deployment in more than 2,500 restaurants in less than 10 months.
With rollout complete, management said 2026 is about execution: implementing new operating standards, using scorecards and accountability measures, and embedding speed metrics into brand partner incentive compensation programs. Skipworth described Smart Kitchen as a major culture shift from paper tickets to a technology-driven system that also improves visibility into operations and coaching opportunities.
In response to an analyst question, Skipworth said roughly 50% of restaurants are hitting 10-minute service times based on daily and weekly averages, while emphasizing the importance of consistency “every order” and “every guest occasion.” He added the company has already seen a 10 percentage point improvement in performance from the beginning of 2026 to the time of the call.
The company also discussed results tied to improved execution, including increased customer frequency in restaurants consistently meeting the 10-minute standard and higher transactions at lunch. Skipworth said the company is seeing specific opportunities in peak windows such as Friday and Saturday dinner, where consistency remains critical.
Delivery times improving, but not as fast as in-store speed
Management said Smart Kitchen has helped reduce delivery times, but not to the same extent as improvements in back-of-house speed. Skipworth said restaurants are seeing year-over-year delivery time reductions of about 15% on average and that this has increased menu-to-order conversions on delivery aggregators since launch.
Kaleida said Wingstop is working with third-party marketplaces on issues such as “algorithms taking some time to improve” and driver performance. He contrasted Smart Kitchen progress with delivery performance, noting that while about 30% of restaurants hit 10-minute service times during busy Friday and Saturday dinner periods, the percentage of restaurants getting delivery times under 30 minutes is “probably” about half that level, underscoring room for improvement.
Marketing, customer mix, and a record Super Bowl day
Skipworth said Wingstop’s new brand campaign, “Wingstop Is Here,” is aimed at expanding awareness and consideration by showcasing broader eating occasions. He said early results show “record high brand recall.” The company also pointed to continued resilience in dinner, and improving satisfaction scores among higher-income households. Skipworth highlighted growth in digital customers earning $50,000 to $100,000 as the fastest-growing cohort within the digital base.
During Q&A, management said the company’s digital database grew 20% in 2025, and Skipworth discussed cohort growth beyond Gen Z, including Gen X and households earning $100,000 to $150,000, which he said are demonstrating frequency similar to the company’s core customer.
Wingstop also highlighted early February Super Bowl performance as a “powerful signal” of brand relevance. Skipworth said it was the company’s highest sales day on record, with over 100,000 new guests acquired in a single day and record ticket levels. He also said it was Wingstop’s first Super Bowl with Smart Kitchen deployed across the system, and the company delivered an average speed of service of about 20 minutes on that day—above the 10-minute target, but an improvement compared with prior years when some restaurants would turn off digital ordering due to heavy demand.
Loyalty pilot signals ahead of national launch; 2026 outlook issued
Wingstop plans to launch its first national loyalty program, “Club Wingstop,” at the end of the second quarter of 2026 following a fourth-quarter 2025 pilot. Skipworth said nearly 50% of active guests in the pilot market enrolled, including a majority of heavy users. He said frequency increased 7% among enrolled guests versus their pre-launch trend, and that more than 30% of new guests in the pilot signed up, with retention rates higher than benchmarks outside the pilot market.
Kaleida said there was nothing “material” to consider at this point regarding accounting headwinds from the loyalty launch. He added that Wingstop expects loyalty to be margin accretive over time and described rewards as including merchandise and experiences, rather than primarily discount-driven offers.
On capital returns, Kaleida said Wingstop returned more than $250 million to shareholders in 2025 through dividends and share repurchases. The board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, payable March 27, 2026, to shareholders of record March 6, 2026, totaling about $8.3 million. In Q4, the company repurchased and retired 248,278 shares at an average price of $241.65. At year-end, $91.3 million remained under the repurchase authorization, and since the program began in August 2023, Wingstop repurchased and retired more than 2.5 million shares at an average price of $258.64.
For 2026, Kaleida guided to domestic same-store sales of flat to low single-digit percentage growth and global unit growth of 15% to 16%. He said the first half of 2026 is expected to be lighter for openings due to franchisees choosing to incorporate a new restaurant refresh design, extending construction timelines modestly, though management maintained full-year expectations. SG&A is expected between $151 million and $154 million, including about $32 million in stock-based compensation and $3 million of restructuring charges tied to organizational changes. Kaleida said these inputs translate to adjusted EBITDA growth of approximately 15% in 2026.
Skipworth also noted leadership changes aimed at supporting growth, including reinstating the chief operating officer role with the appointment of Raj Kapoor, who will lead global operations and development. The company also formed a commercial team to execute personalization strategies tied to loyalty, and an analytics center of excellence to expand data capabilities.
About Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING)
Wingstop Inc (NASDAQ: WING) is a fast-casual restaurant chain specializing in chicken wings and related menu items. Founded in 1994 in Garland, Texas, the company has built its brand around bold, chef-inspired wing flavors and a streamlined service model that caters to dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering orders.
The company’s core offerings include both bone-in and boneless chicken wings tossed in a variety of proprietary rubs and sauces, such as Original Hot, Lemon Pepper, and Mango Habanero.
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