SHAKE SHACK INC. vs Yum China Holdings, Inc., two Restaurants stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Shake Shack and Yum China illustrate how price can invert profitability. Shake Shack, the growing better-burger chain, keeps 2.76% of revenue, returns 7.43% on equity, and trades at a steep 58.1 times earnings. Yum China, operating KFC and Pizza Hut across China, keeps 7.83% of sales, returns 15.49% on equity, pays a 2.35% dividend, and trades at just 15.64 times. Yum China generates a 6.44% free cash flow yield against Shake Shack's 0.69%, and runs debt-free where Shake Shack carries 0.45 debt-to-equity. Yum China's $14.5B market value is roughly six times Shake Shack's $2.3B, despite the lower earnings multiple.
Comparison updated 2026-07-11.
| Metric | SHAK | YUMC |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $58.61 | $43.04 |
| Market cap | $2.4B | $15.2B |
| Sector | Restaurants | Restaurants |
| Stage | Growth | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | — | -1.8% |
| P/E | 59.8 | 16.5 |
| P/B | 4.26 | 2.49 |
| P/S | 1.58 | 1.26 |
| EV/EBITDA | 13.8 | 8.2 |
| Revenue growth | +16.2% | +6.7% |
| Operating margin | -0.7% | 13.7% |
| Net margin | 2.8% | 7.8% |
| Return on equity | 7.4% | 15.5% |
| Return on assets | 2.1% | 8.7% |
| Return on invested capital | 5.6% | 15.9% |
| FCF yield | 0.7% | 6.1% |
| Dividend yield | — | 2.2% |
| Debt / equity | 0.45 | 0.00 |
| Current ratio | 1.69 | 1.01 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 1.97 | 3.42 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 6 / 9 | 8 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.