Executive Summary

Q1 2024 was mixed: revenue declined 1.8% YoY to $110.5M amid calendar timing (53rd-week shift) and weather/Easter headwinds, but margins remained resilient with restaurant-level operating margin of 18.8% and net income of $6.9M ($0.40 diluted EPS) .
Comparable sales fell 4.3% on a calendar basis (traffic -6.9% offset by +2.6% average check), with an estimated $0.8M weather impact and $0.4M Easter shift; the fiscal-basis comp was -5.2% due to the 53rd week in 2023 .
Management maintained FY24 adjusted EPS guidance of $1.82–$1.87 and reduced FY24 G&A guidance by ~$1M to $29–$30M (52-week basis); capex, unit openings (6–8), tax rate (13–14%), and diluted shares (~17.4M) were unchanged .
Liquidity remains strong with $56.4M cash, no debt, and $25M of revolver availability; the company repurchased 214,659 shares for ~$7.3M in Q1 (authorization remaining $13.8M) .
Stock catalysts: narrative centers on traffic recovery after one-off weather/Easter effects, durability of ~19% restaurant-level margins despite labor and delivery cost pressure, and execution on 6–8 new units with disciplined G&A .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well
- Margin quality: Delivered 18.8% restaurant-level operating margin despite top-line pressure; CEO emphasized “four-wall operational excellence” and margin among the best in the industry .
- Off-premise momentum: Off-premise reached ~29% of sales (up from ~27% LY), supporting mix and convenience adoption .
- Cost discipline and guidance: G&A fell to $7.1M (6.5% of sales) on lower performance-based bonuses; FY24 G&A guidance reduced to $29–$30M (from $30–$31M) .
What Went Wrong
- Traffic-driven comp decline: Calendar-basis comps -4.3% driven by a 6.9% decrease in average weekly customers (partly offset by +2.6% average check) .
- Cost mix headwinds: Labor rate inflation of ~3.6% at comps and higher delivery/catering charges and repairs lifted operating costs ~30 bps; restaurant pre-opening expenses rose with new unit timing .
- Calendar/weather noise: A 53rd-week shift removed a high-volume holiday week from Q1 2024 (-$1.8M revenue impact), plus ~$0.8M weather and ~$0.4M Easter headwinds weighed on sales .

Financial Results

Income Statement Summary (oldest → newest)

Metric	Q3 2023	Q4 2023	Q1 2024
Revenue ($M)	$113.5	$116.3	$110.5
Net Income ($M)	$7.1	$5.5	$6.9
Diluted EPS (GAAP)	$0.39	$0.31	$0.40
Adjusted Diluted EPS (non-GAAP)	$0.44	$0.45	$0.42
Income from Ops Margin %	6.5%	5.4%	6.4%
Net Income Margin %	6.2%	4.7%	6.3%
Restaurant-Level Operating Margin %	19.4%	20.0%	18.8%
Off-Premise Sales % of Revenue	~28%	~31%	~29%

YoY Comparison (Q1 2024 vs Q1 2023)

Metric	Q1 2023	Q1 2024
Revenue ($M)	$112.5	$110.5
Net Income ($M)	$8.2	$6.9
Diluted EPS (GAAP)	$0.45	$0.40
Adjusted Diluted EPS (non-GAAP)	$0.47	$0.42
Restaurant-Level Operating Margin %	19.7%	18.8%

KPIs and Operating Drivers (oldest → newest)

KPI	Q3 2023	Q4 2023	Q1 2024
Comparable Restaurant Sales (YoY)	+2.0%	+0.3% (13 wk)	-4.3% (calendar) / -5.2% (fiscal)
Average Check ($)	—	—	$19.41
Avg Weekly Customers (YoY)	-1.8%	-3.1%	-6.9%
Cost of Sales Deflation	~5%	~8%	~1.3%
Labor Rate Inflation (comps)	—	~4%	~3.6%
AUV (in $000s)	—	—	$1,085 vs $1,133 LY
Total Restaurants (end of period)	100	101	102
Openings / Closures	+1 net (Harker Heights)	+1 (Terrell)	+1 in Q1 (New Braunfels); +1 opened post-Q1 (Austin); -1 closed (Lakewood)
Share Repurchase (shares/$)	538,907 / ~$20.0M (Q3)	167,535 / ~$5.9M (Q4)	214,659 / ~$7.3M (Q1)
Cash / Debt	$69.9M / $0 (Q3)	$67.8M / $0 (Q4)	$56.4M / $0; $25M revolver avail.

Note: Q1 2024 revenue was reduced by ~$1.8M due to a 53rd-week calendar shift; estimated weather impact ~$0.8M and Easter timing ~$0.4M weighed on comps .

Guidance Changes

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance (as of 2/22/24)	Current Guidance (as of 5/9/24)	Change
Adjusted EPS (diluted)	FY 2024	$1.82–$1.87	$1.82–$1.87	Maintained
G&A Expense	FY 2024	$30–$31M (52-week basis)	$29–$30M (52-week basis)	Raised efficiency (lowered)
New Restaurant Openings	FY 2024	6–8	6–8	Maintained
Net Capex (net of TIAs)	FY 2024	~$41–$46M	~$41–$46M	Maintained
Pre-opening Expense	FY 2024	~$2.7–$3.2M	~$2.7–$3.2M	Maintained
Effective Tax Rate	FY 2024	~13–14%	~13–14%	Maintained
Diluted Shares	FY 2024	~17.4M	~17.4M	Maintained

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

Note: Full Q1 2024 transcript could not be retrieved due to a database inconsistency; themes below are synthesized from the Q1 2024 press release/10-Q and prior-quarter press releases.

Topic	Previous Mentions (Q3 2023, Q4 2023)	Current Period (Q1 2024)	Trend
Traffic vs. Check	Q3: comps +2.0% on +3.8% check, -1.8% traffic ; Q4: +0.3% comps, +3.4% check, -3.1% traffic	-4.3% comps; -6.9% traffic, +2.6% check (calendar basis)	Deteriorating traffic; check growth moderating
Commodity Costs	Deflation ~5% (Q3)	Deflation ~8% (Q4)	~1.3% deflation (Q1)
Labor & Operations	Q3: labor +bps, repairs/insurance up ; Q4: labor +30 bps	Labor inflation ~3.6%; delivery/catering charges +30 bps; repairs +	Cost pressure persistent
Off-Premise Mix	~28% (Q3)	~31% (Q4)	~29% (Q1)
Weather/Calendar	—	Extra 14th week boosted Q4; calendar table provided	-$1.8M revenue shift; weather ~$0.8M; Easter ~$0.4M
Unit Growth	+1 in Q3	+1 in Q4; pipeline 6–8 FY24	+1 in Q1; +1 opened post-Q1; -1 closure; still targeting 6–8

Management Commentary

“Despite top-line headwinds, our team’s continued focus on four-wall operational excellence allowed us to deliver an 18.8% restaurant-level operating margin which remains among the best in our industry.” — Steve Hislop, CEO .
“We were encouraged by the sequential monthly improvements in our underlying trends as we moved through the quarter, when adjusted for the Easter calendar shift.” — Steve Hislop, CEO .
“We continued to see growth in our off-premise business as consumers embrace the opportunity to enjoy Chuy’s…from the comfort of their own home.” — Steve Hislop, CEO .

Q&A Highlights

The Q1 2024 earnings call transcript was unavailable due to a retrieval/database inconsistency at the time of this analysis. We will update Q&A themes and any clarifications on guidance, traffic elasticity, marketing/promotions, and unit economics as soon as the transcript can be accessed .

Estimates Context

Wall Street consensus (S&P Global) could not be retrieved due to a Capital IQ mapping issue for CHUY; as a result, we cannot assess Q1 beats/misses vs. consensus at this time. We will refresh once S&P Global mapping is available and provide a beat/miss matrix across revenue and EPS.*

Key Takeaways for Investors

Transitory headwinds masked underlying margin resilience: calendar/holiday shift and weather drove much of the Q1 top-line softness, yet restaurant-level margins held near 19% on cost discipline and moderated commodities .
Guidance credible: maintaining FY24 adjusted EPS with lower G&A guidance suggests confidence in controllables despite traffic pressure; execution on 6–8 openings remains intact .
Traffic is the swing factor: re-acceleration as weather/Easter noise clears and as marketing/off-premise channels support demand will be critical to sustain margins without incremental pricing .
Off-premise remains a structural pillar (~29–31% mix), but it brings higher delivery/catering costs; watch balance of throughput vs. margin in delivery .
Capital allocation is shareholder-friendly and flexible: ample cash, no debt, continued repurchases, and $25M revolver availability provide optionality through the build cycle .
Cost tailwinds are moderating (commodity deflation slowed to ~1.3%); sustaining ~19% restaurant-level margins will require labor/repair containment and operational efficiencies .
Monitor cadence of openings and early performance of New Braunfels and Austin, as well as the Lakewood closure read-through for portfolio optimization .

Sources: Q1 2024 8-K press release and exhibits ; Q1 2024 10-Q ; Q4 2023 8-K press release and exhibits ; Q3 2023 8-K press release and exhibits .

*Consensus unavailable via S&P Global at the time of analysis due to mapping error in the CIQ company map for CHUY.

CHUY'S HOLDINGS, INC. (CHUY)·Q1 2024 Earnings Summary