# CHEESECAKE FACTORY INC (CAKE) Informational only - not investment advice. CIK: 0000887596 SIC: 5812 Retail-Eating Places SIC breadcrumb: [Retail Trade](/division/G/) > [Eating And Drinking Places](/major-group/58/) > [SIC 5812 Retail-Eating Places](/industry/5812/) Latest 10-K filed: 2026-02-23 SEC page: https://www.sec.gov/edgar/browse/?CIK=887596 Filing source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/887596/000110465926018643/cake-20251230x10k.htm ## Selected Fundamentals | Metric | Value | Unit | FY | Filed | | --- | ---: | --- | ---: | --- | | Revenue | 3751806000 | USD | 2025 | 2026-02-23 | | Net income | 148427000 | USD | 2025 | 2026-02-23 | | Assets | 3261672000 | USD | 2025 | 2026-02-23 | ## Financials Annual standardized facts from SEC companyfacts as of latest extracted filing date 2026-02-23. Source: https://data.sec.gov/api/xbrl/companyfacts/CIK0000887596.json. Derived margins are computed from the extracted annual SEC facts. | Metric | 2014 | 2015 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | | Revenue | | | | | | | | 3,303,156,000 | 3,581,699,000 | 3,751,806,000 | | Net income | | | | | 127,293,000 | -253,365,000 | 72,373,000 | 43,123,000 | 156,783,000 | 148,427,000 | | Operating income | 144,731,000 | 165,246,000 | 200,993,000 | 152,845,000 | 103,598,000 | -347,437,000 | 82,318,000 | 38,935,000 | 178,317,000 | 187,285,000 | | Diluted EPS | 1.96 | 2.30 | 2.83 | 3.27 | 2.86 | -6.32 | 1.01 | 0.86 | 3.20 | 3.06 | | Assets | 1,161,376,000 | 1,233,346,000 | 1,293,319,000 | 1,333,060,000 | 2,840,593,000 | 2,747,054,000 | 2,798,125,000 | 2,775,220,000 | 3,041,760,000 | 3,261,672,000 | | Liabilities | | | | | | | | 2,483,217,000 | 2,598,305,000 | 2,825,245,000 | | Stockholders' equity | 556,510,000 | 588,539,000 | 603,207,000 | 613,530,000 | 571,742,000 | 288,693,000 | 330,166,000 | 292,003,000 | 443,455,000 | 436,427,000 | | Cash and cash equivalents | 58,018,000 | 43,854,000 | 53,839,000 | 6,008,000 | 58,416,000 | 154,085,000 | 189,627,000 | 114,777,000 | 84,176,000 | 215,729,000 | | Net margin | | | | | | | | 1.31% | 4.38% | 3.96% | | Operating margin | | | | | | | | 1.18% | 4.98% | 4.99% | ## Quarterly Quarterly standardized facts from SEC companyfacts as of latest extracted filing date 2026-05-04. Source: https://data.sec.gov/api/xbrl/companyfacts/CIK0000887596.json. Flow metrics use discrete quarter-length periods from 10-Q/10-Q/A filings. Q4 revenue and net income are derived only when annual FY and nine-month YTD facts exist for the same fiscal year; derived Q4 values are labeled. EPS Q4 is not derived. | Quarter | End date | Revenue | Net income | Diluted EPS | Method | | --- | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | --- | | 2022-Q2 | 2022-06-28 | | | 0.50 | reported discrete quarter | | 2022-Q3 | 2022-09-27 | 784,001,000 | | -0.05 | reported discrete quarter | | 2023-Q1 | 2023-04-04 | 866,114,000 | 28,050,000 | 0.56 | reported discrete quarter | | 2023-Q2 | 2023-07-04 | 866,170,000 | 42,675,000 | 0.87 | reported discrete quarter | | 2023-Q3 | 2023-10-03 | 830,210,000 | 17,945,000 | 0.37 | reported discrete quarter | | 2024-Q1 | 2024-04-02 | 891,223,000 | 33,191,000 | 0.68 | reported discrete quarter | | 2024-Q2 | 2024-07-02 | 904,042,000 | 52,444,000 | 1.08 | reported discrete quarter | | 2024-Q3 | 2024-10-01 | 865,471,000 | 29,994,000 | 0.61 | reported discrete quarter | | 2024-Q4 | 2024-12-31 | | 41,154,000 | | derived Q4 = FY annual - nine-month YTD | | 2025-Q1 | 2025-04-01 | 927,197,000 | 32,941,000 | 0.67 | reported discrete quarter | | 2025-Q2 | 2025-07-01 | 955,825,000 | 54,812,000 | 1.14 | reported discrete quarter | | 2025-Q3 | 2025-09-30 | 907,226,000 | 31,899,000 | 0.66 | reported discrete quarter | | 2025-Q4 | 2025-12-30 | 961,558,000 | 28,775,000 | | derived Q4 = FY annual - nine-month YTD | | 2026-Q1 | 2026-03-31 | 978,833,000 | 49,548,000 | 1.02 | reported discrete quarter | ## Macro Cross-References - [CPIAUCSL](/indicator/CPIAUCSL/): Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: All Items in U.S. City Average - [UNRATE](/indicator/UNRATE/): Unemployment Rate - [FEDFUNDS](/indicator/FEDFUNDS/): Federal Funds Effective Rate - [CES0500000003](/indicator/CES0500000003/): Average Hourly Earnings of All Employees, Total Private - [DFEDTARU](/indicator/DFEDTARU/): Federal Funds Target Range - Upper Limit - [DFEDTARL](/indicator/DFEDTARL/): Federal Funds Target Range - Lower Limit - [DGS3MO](/indicator/DGS3MO/): Market Yield on U.S. Treasury Securities at 3-Month Constant Maturity - [DGS2](/indicator/DGS2/): Market Yield on U.S. Treasury Securities at 2-Year Constant Maturity - [DGS10](/indicator/DGS10/): Market Yield on U.S. Treasury Securities at 10-Year Constant Maturity - [DGS30](/indicator/DGS30/): Market Yield on U.S. Treasury Securities at 30-Year Constant Maturity - [T10Y2Y](/indicator/T10Y2Y/): 10-Year Treasury Constant Maturity Minus 2-Year Treasury Constant Maturity - [CPILFESL](/indicator/CPILFESL/): Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: All Items Less Food and Energy - [CPIUFDSL](/indicator/CPIUFDSL/): Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Food - [CPIENGSL](/indicator/CPIENGSL/): Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Energy - [CUSR0000SAH1](/indicator/CUSR0000SAH1/): Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Shelter - [PCEPI](/indicator/PCEPI/): Personal Consumption Expenditures: Chain-type Price Index - [PCEPILFE](/indicator/PCEPILFE/): Personal Consumption Expenditures Excluding Food and Energy: Chain-type Price Index - [PPIACO](/indicator/PPIACO/): Producer Price Index by Commodity: All Commodities - [T10YIE](/indicator/T10YIE/): 10-Year Breakeven Inflation Rate - [U6RATE](/indicator/U6RATE/): Total Unemployed, Plus All Marginally Attached Workers Plus Total Employed Part Time for Economic Reasons - [PAYEMS](/indicator/PAYEMS/): All Employees, Total Nonfarm - [CIVPART](/indicator/CIVPART/): Labor Force Participation Rate - [EMRATIO](/indicator/EMRATIO/): Employment-Population Ratio - [UNEMPLOY](/indicator/UNEMPLOY/): Unemployed - [CE16OV](/indicator/CE16OV/): Employment Level - [ICSA](/indicator/ICSA/): Initial Claims - [JTSJOL](/indicator/JTSJOL/): Job Openings: Total Nonfarm - [JTSQUR](/indicator/JTSQUR/): Quits: Total Nonfarm - [GDPC1](/indicator/GDPC1/): Real Gross Domestic Product - [A191RL1Q225SBEA](/indicator/A191RL1Q225SBEA/): Real Gross Domestic Product: Percent Change from Preceding Period - [INDPRO](/indicator/INDPRO/): Industrial Production: Total Index - [TCU](/indicator/TCU/): Capacity Utilization: Total Index - [HOUST](/indicator/HOUST/): New Privately-Owned Housing Units Started: Total Units - [PERMIT](/indicator/PERMIT/): New Privately-Owned Housing Units Authorized in Permit-Issuing Places: Total Units - [RSAFS](/indicator/RSAFS/): Advance Retail Sales: Retail Trade - [PCE](/indicator/PCE/): Personal Consumption Expenditures - [DSPIC96](/indicator/DSPIC96/): Real Disposable Personal Income - [PSAVERT](/indicator/PSAVERT/): Personal Saving Rate - [M2SL](/indicator/M2SL/): M2 - [BOPGSTB](/indicator/BOPGSTB/): U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services: Balance - [MSPUS](/indicator/MSPUS/): Median Sales Price of Houses Sold for the United States - [HSN1F](/indicator/HSN1F/): New One Family Houses Sold: United States - [RHORUSQ156N](/indicator/RHORUSQ156N/): Homeownership Rate in the United States - [TTLCONS](/indicator/TTLCONS/): Total Construction Spending: Total Construction in the United States - [RRVRUSQ156N](/indicator/RRVRUSQ156N/): Rental Vacancy Rate in the United States - [TOTALSL](/indicator/TOTALSL/): Total Consumer Credit Owned and Securitized - [REVOLSL](/indicator/REVOLSL/): Revolving Consumer Credit Owned and Securitized - [DRCCLACBS](/indicator/DRCCLACBS/): Delinquency Rate on Credit Card Loans, All Commercial Banks - [GDP](/indicator/GDP/): Gross Domestic Product - [GPDI](/indicator/GPDI/): Gross Private Domestic Investment - [GCE](/indicator/GCE/): Government Consumption Expenditures and Gross Investment - [PCEC](/indicator/PCEC/): Personal Consumption Expenditures - [NETEXP](/indicator/NETEXP/): Net Exports of Goods and Services - [GFDEBTN](/indicator/GFDEBTN/): Federal Debt: Total Public Debt - [GFDEGDQ188S](/indicator/GFDEGDQ188S/): Federal Debt: Total Public Debt as Percent of Gross Domestic Product - [FYFSD](/indicator/FYFSD/): Federal Surplus or Deficit - [FGRECPT](/indicator/FGRECPT/): Federal Government Current Receipts - [FGEXPND](/indicator/FGEXPND/): Federal Government: Current Expenditures - [MANEMP](/indicator/MANEMP/): All Employees, Manufacturing - [USCONS](/indicator/USCONS/): All Employees, Construction - [USTRADE](/indicator/USTRADE/): All Employees, Retail Trade - [USFIRE](/indicator/USFIRE/): All Employees, Financial Activities - [USGOVT](/indicator/USGOVT/): All Employees, Government - [AWHAETP](/indicator/AWHAETP/): Average Weekly Hours of All Employees, Total Private - [DGORDER](/indicator/DGORDER/): Manufacturers' New Orders: Durable Goods - [NEWORDER](/indicator/NEWORDER/): Manufacturers' New Orders: Nondefense Capital Goods Excluding Aircraft - [BUSINV](/indicator/BUSINV/): Total Business Inventories - [EXPGS](/indicator/EXPGS/): Exports of Goods and Services - [IMPGS](/indicator/IMPGS/): Imports of Goods and Services - [IR](/indicator/IR/): Import Price Index (End Use): All Commodities - [PPIFIS](/indicator/PPIFIS/): Producer Price Index by Commodity: Final Demand ## Latest quarter (10-Q) Latest 10-Q source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/887596/000110465926054987/cake-20260331x10q.htm Extracted between Part I Item 2 and the next Item 3/4 or Part II heading after HTML sanitization. Confidence: high Filing date: 2026-05-04 Report date: 2026-03-31 Item 2.   Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations. Forward-Looking Statements Certain information included in this Form 10-Q and other materials we have filed or may file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), as well as information included in oral or written statements made by us or on our behalf, may contain forward-looking statements about our current and presently expected performance trends, growth plans, business goals and other matters. These statements may be contained in our filings with the SEC, in our press releases, in other written communications, and in oral statements made by or with the approval of one of our authorized officers. These statements are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as codified in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (together with the Securities Act, the “Acts”). This includes, without limitation, statements regarding corporate social responsibility (“CSR”) and in our CSR report, the effects of geopolitical and macroeconomic factors, including evolving government policies and global trade dynamics, on our financial condition and our results of operations, financial guidance and projections, as well as expectations of our future financial condition, results of operations, sales, target growth rates, cash flows, quarterly dividends, share repurchases, capital structure and leverage, corporate strategy, potential price increases, plans, targets, goals, objectives, performance, growth potential, competitive position and business, and statements regarding our ability to: leverage our competitive strengths, including developing and investing in new restaurant concepts and expanding The Cheesecake Factory® brand to other retail opportunities; maintain our aggregate sales volumes; deliver comparable sales growth; provide a differentiated experience to customers; outperform the casual dining industry and increase our market share; leverage sales increases and manage flow through; manage market risks and cost pressures, including increasing wage rates and insurance costs, and increase margins; grow earnings; remain relevant to consumers; attract and retain qualified management and other staff; increase shareholder value; find suitable sites and manage increasing construction costs; profitably expand our concepts domestically and in Canada, and work with our licensees to expand The Cheesecake Factory internationally; support the growth of North Italia, Flower Child and additional brands within our Fox Restaurant Concepts (“Other FRC”) restaurants; and utilize our capital effectively. These forward-looking statements may be affected by various factors including: economic, public health and political conditions that impact consumer confidence and spending, including government shutdowns, trade policy, changes in interest rates, periods of heightened inflation and market instability, and armed conflicts; supply chain disruptions; demonstrations, political unrest, potential damage to or closure of our restaurants and potential reputational damage to us or any of our brands; pandemics and related containment measures, including the potential for quarantines or restriction on in-person dining; acceptance and success of The Cheesecake Factory in international markets; acceptance and success of North Italia, Flower Child and Other FRC restaurants; the risks of doing business abroad through Company-owned restaurants and/or licensees; foreign exchange rates, tariffs and cross border taxation; changes in unemployment rates; increases in minimum wages and benefit costs; the economic health of our landlords and other tenants in retail centers in which our restaurants are located, and our ability to successfully manage our lease arrangements with landlords; the economic health of suppliers, licensees, vendors and other third parties providing goods or services to us; the timing of our new unit development and related permitting; compliance with debt covenants; strategic capital allocation decisions including with respect to share repurchases or dividends; the ability to achieve projected financial results; the resolution of uncertain tax positions with the Internal Revenue Service and the impact of tax reform legislation; changes in laws impacting our business; adverse weather conditions and natural disasters in regions in which our restaurants are located; factors that are under the control of government agencies, landlords and other third parties; the risks, costs and uncertainties associated with opening new restaurants; and other risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in our filings with the SEC. Such forward-looking statements include all other statements that are not historical facts, as well as statements that are preceded by, followed by or that include words or phrases such as “believe,” “plan,” “will likely result,” “expect,” “intend,” “will continue,” “is anticipated,” “estimate,” “project,” “may,” “could,” “would,” “should” and similar expressions. These statements are based on our current expectations and involve risks and uncertainties which may cause results to differ materially from those set forth in such statements. 19 Table of Contents In connection with the “safe harbor” provisions of the Acts, we have identified and are disclosing important factors, risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements made by us, or on our behalf. (See Part II, Item 1A of this report, “Risk Factors,” and Part I, Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 30, 2025.) These cautionary statements are to be used as a reference in connection with any forward-looking statements. The factors, risks and uncertainties identified in these cautionary statements are in addition to those contained in any other cautionary statements, written or oral, which may be made or otherwise addressed in connection with a forward-looking statement or contained in any of our subsequent filings with the SEC. Because of these factors, risks and uncertainties, we caution against placing undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Although we believe that the assumptions underlying forward-looking statements are currently reasonable, any of the assumptions could be incorrect or incomplete, and there can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements or to make any other forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless required to do so by law. The below discussion and analysis, which contains forward-looking statements, should be read in conjunction with our interim unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and related notes in Part I, Item 1 of this report, Part II, Item 1A of this report, “Risk Factors,” and with the following items included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 30, 2025: the audited consolidated financial statements and related notes in Part IV, Item 15; “Risk Factors” included in Part I, Item 1A; “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” included in Part II, Item 7; and the cautionary statements included throughout this Form 10-Q. The inclusion of supplementary analytical and related information herein may require us to make estimates and assumptions to enable us to fairly present, in all material respects, our analysis of trends and expectations with respect to our results of operations and financial position. Geopolitical and Other Macroeconomic Impacts to our Operating Environment In recent years, our operating results were impacted by geopolitical and macroeconomic events, causing supply chain challenges and significantly increased commodity and wage inflation. Our commodity and wage inflationary environment began returning to more historical levels in fiscal 2024. The impact of ongoing geopolitical and macroeconomic events, including evolving government policies and global trade and tariff dynamics, could lead to further wage inflation, product and services cost inflation, disruptions in the supply chain, staffing challenges, shifts in consumer behavior and delays in new restaurant openings. Adverse weather conditions and natural disasters may further exacerbate a number of these factors. For more information regarding the risks to our business relating to the geopolitical and macroeconomic events, see Part II, Item 1A of this report, “Risk Factors,” and “Risk Factors” in Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 30, 2025. General The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated is a leader in experiential dining. We are culinary forward and relentlessly focused on hospitality. We currently own and operate 371 restaurants throughout the United States and Canada under brands including The Cheesecake Factory® (216 locations), North Italia® (50 locations), Flower Child® (43 locations) and additional brands within our FRC portfolio (56 locations). Internationally, 36 The Cheesecake Factory® restaurants operate under licensing agreements. Our bakery division operates two facilities that produce quality cheesecakes and other baked products for our restaurants, international licensees and third-party bakery customers. Overview Our strategy is driven by our commitment to deliver exceptional food and hospitality, and is centered primarily on menu innovation, service and operational execution to differentiate our concepts and drive competitively strong performance that is sustainable over the long-term. Financially, we are focused on prudently managing expenses at our restaurants, bakery facilities and corporate support center, while leveraging our scale, purchasing power and operational discipline to support financial performance. Our top long-term capital allocation priority is to develop new Company-owned restaurants, with a focus on opening our concepts in premier locations within new and existing markets. We plan to continue expanding The Cheesecake Factory, North Italia and Flower Child concepts. In addition, our FRC subsidiary serves as an incubator, innovating new food, dining and hospitality experiences to create differentiated, high-quality concepts. 20 Table of Contents Our revenue growth is primarily driven by new restaurant openings and increases in comparable restaurant sales. For The Cheesecake Factory concept, our strategy is to increase comparable restaurant sales by growing average check while maintaining customer traffic. We strive to accomplish this by (1) continuing to offer innovative, high quality menu items that offer customers a wide range of options in terms of flavor, price and value, (2) focusing on service and hospitality with the goal of delivering an exceptional dining experience and (3) continuing to provide our customers with convenient options for off-premise dining. We continue to support these efforts through a number of initiatives, including menu innovation, increasing customer throughput in our restaurants, leveraging our gift card program, partnering with a third party to provide delivery services for our restaurants, increasing customer awareness of our online ordering capabilities and improving the pick-up experience, augmenting our marketing programs, including our Cheesecake Rewards® program, enhancing our training programs and leveraging insights from our customer satisfaction measurement platform. Average check variations are driven by menu price increases and/or chang [Excerpt truncated for page length; source filing is linked above.] ## Latest 10-K MD&A Extracted between Item 7 and the next Item 7A/8 heading after HTML sanitization. Confidence: high ITEM 7.         MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS This Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (“MD&A”), which contains forward-looking statements, should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes in Part IV, Item 15 of this report, the “Risk Factors” included in Part I, Item 1A of this report and the cautionary statements included throughout this report. The inclusion of supplementary analytical and related information herein may require us to make estimates and assumptions to enable us to fairly present, in all material respects, our analysis of trends and expectations with respect to our results of operations and financial position. We utilize a 52/53-week fiscal year ending on the Tuesday closest to December 31 for financial reporting purposes. Fiscal years 2025, 2024 and 2023 each consisted of 52 weeks. Fiscal year 2026 will consist of 52 weeks. The following MD&A includes a discussion comparing our results in fiscal 2025 to fiscal 2024. For a discussion comparing our results from fiscal 2024 to fiscal 2023, refer to “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in Part II, Item 7 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024, filed with the SEC on February 24, 2025. Geopolitical and Other Macroeconomic Impacts to our Operating Environment In recent years, our operating results were impacted by geopolitical and macroeconomic events, causing supply chain challenges and significantly increased commodity and wage inflation. Our commodity and wage inflationary environment began returning to more historical levels in fiscal 2024. The impact of ongoing geopolitical and macroeconomic events, including evolving government policies and global trade and tariff dynamics, could lead to further wage inflation, product and services cost inflation, disruptions in the supply chain, staffing challenges, shifts in consumer behavior, and delays in new restaurant openings. Adverse weather conditions and natural disasters may further exacerbate a number of these factors. Any of these factors may have an adverse impact on our business and materially adversely affect our financial performance. General The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated is a leader in experiential dining. We are culinary forward and relentlessly focused on hospitality. As of February 23, 2026, we owned and operated 368 restaurants throughout the United States and Canada under brands including The Cheesecake Factory® (216 locations), North Italia® (48 locations), Flower Child® (43 locations) and additional brands within our FRC portfolio (55 locations). Internationally, 35 The Cheesecake Factory® restaurants operate under licensing agreements. Our bakery division operates two facilities that produce quality cheesecakes and other baked products for our restaurants, international licensees and third-party bakery customers. Overview Our strategy is driven by our commitment to deliver exceptional food and hospitality, and is centered primarily on menu innovation, service and operational execution to differentiate our concepts and drive competitively strong performance that is sustainable over the long-term. Financially, we are focused on prudently managing expenses at our restaurants, bakery facilities and corporate support center, while leveraging our scale, purchasing power and operational discipline to support financial performance. 40 Table of Contents Investing in new Company-owned restaurant development is our top long-term capital allocation priority, with a focus on opening our concepts in premier locations within both new and existing markets. We plan to continue expanding The Cheesecake Factory, North Italia and Flower Child concepts. In addition, our FRC subsidiary serves as an incubator, innovating new food, dining and hospitality experiences to create differentiated, high-quality concepts. Our revenue growth is primarily driven by new restaurant openings and increases in comparable restaurant sales. For The Cheesecake Factory concept, our strategy is to increase comparable restaurant sales by growing average check while maintaining customer traffic through (1) continuing to offer innovative, high quality menu items that offer customers a wide range of options in terms of flavor, price and value, (2) focusing on service and hospitality with the goal of delivering an exceptional dining experience and (3) continuing to provide our customers with convenient options for off-premise dining. We are continuing our efforts on a number of initiatives, including menu innovation, increasing customer throughput in our restaurants, leveraging our gift card program, partnering with a third party to provide delivery services for our restaurants, increasing customer awareness of our online ordering capabilities and improving the pick-up experience, augmenting our marketing programs, including our Cheesecake Rewards® program, enhancing our training programs and leveraging insights from our customer satisfaction measurement platform. Average check variations are driven by menu price increases and/or changes in menu mix. We generally update The Cheesecake Factory menus twice a year, and our philosophy is to use price increases to help offset key operating cost increases in a manner that supports both our margin and customer traffic objectives. Prior to fiscal 2022, we targeted menu price increases of approximately 2% to 3% annually, utilizing a market-based strategy to help mitigate cost pressure in higher-wage geographies. In the last three fiscal years, we implemented price increases above our historical levels, to help offset significant inflationary cost pressures. We will continue to take the cost and inflationary environment into consideration when implementing future pricing decisions. In addition, on a regular basis, we carefully consider opportunities to adjust our menu offerings or ingredients to help manage product availability and cost. Margins are subject to fluctuations in commodity costs, labor, restaurant-level occupancy expenses, general and administrative (“G&A”) expenses and preopening expenses. Our objective is to drive margin expansion over time by leveraging incremental sales to increase restaurant-level margins at The Cheesecake Factory concept, leveraging our bakery operations, international and consumer packaged goods royalty revenue streams and G&A expense, and optimizing our restaurant portfolio. We plan to employ a balanced capital allocation strategy, comprised of investing in new restaurants that are expected to meet our targeted returns, managing our aggregate debt levels and returning capital to shareholders through our dividend and share repurchase programs, the latter of which offsets dilution from our equity compensation program and supports our earnings per share growth. Future decisions to pay, increase or decrease dividends or to repurchase shares are at the discretion of the Board and will be dependent on a number of factors, including limitations pursuant to the terms and conditions of our Loan Agreement and applicable law. Longer-term, we believe our domestic revenue growth (comprised of our targeted annual unit growth of 7% in aggregate across concepts and comparable sales growth) combined with margin expansion, planned debt repayments and an anticipated capital return program will support our long-term financial objective of 10% to 15% total return to shareholders, on average. We define our total return as earnings per share growth plus our dividend yield. (See Item 1A — Risk Factors — “Our stock price could be adversely affected if our performance falls short of our financial guidance and/or market expectations.”) 41 Table of Contents Results of Operations The following table presents, for the periods indicated, information from our consolidated statements of income expressed as percentages of revenues. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​   ​ ​ ​ 2025   ​ ​ ​ 2024 ​ Revenues 100.0 %   100.0 % ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Costs and expenses: ​ ​   ​ Food and beverage costs ​ 21.7 ​ 22.5 Labor expenses ​ 35.0 ​ 35.3 Other operating costs and expenses ​ 27.0 ​ 26.7 General and administrative expenses ​ 6.5 ​ 6.4 Depreciation and amortization expenses ​ 2.9 ​ 2.8 Impairment of assets and lease termination expenses ​ 0.6 ​ 0.4 Acquisition-related contingent consideration, compensation and amortization expenses ​ 0.4 ​ 0.1 ​ Preopening costs ​ 0.9 ​ 0.8 Total costs and expenses ​ 95.0 ​ 95.0 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Income from operations ​ 5.0 ​ 5.0 Interest expense, net ​ (0.3) ​ (0.3) Loss on extinguishment of debt ​ (0.4) ​ — ​ Other income, net ​ 0.0 ​ 0.1 ​ Income before income taxes ​ 4.3 ​ 4.8 Income tax provision ​ 0.3 ​ 0.4 Net income ​ 4.0 % 4.4 % ​ Fiscal 2025 Compared to Fiscal 2024 Revenues Revenues increased 4.7% to $3,751.8 million for fiscal 2025 compared to $3,581.7 million for fiscal 2024, primarily due to additional revenue related to new restaurant openings. As part of our annual assessment of gift card breakage during fiscal 2025, we had a change in historical redemption pattern related to gift cards and aligned the recognition of gift card breakage to the updated estimated redemption pattern. As a result, in fiscal 2025, we recognized $17.3 million of additional gift card breakage. The Cheesecake Factory sales increased 1.0% to $2,688.8 million for fiscal 2025 compared to $2,661.6 million for fiscal 2024. Excluding the impact of the additional gift card breakage recognized in fiscal 2025 (as discussed above), The Cheesecake Factory average sales per restaurant operating week increased 0.3% to $238,146 in fiscal 2025 from $237,349 in fiscal 2024. Total operating weeks at The Cheesecake Factory restaurants remained relatively flat with 11,218 in fiscal 2025 and 11,214 in the comparable prior year period. The Cheesecake Factory comparable sales increased by 0.1%, or $2.2 million, from fiscal 2024. The increase from fiscal 2024 was primarily driven by an increase in average check of 2.4% (based on an increase of 4.3% in menu pricing, partially offset by a 1.9% negative change from menu mix), partially offset by decreased customer traffic of 2.3%. We implemented menu price increases of approximately 2.4% and 1.5% in the first and third quarters of fiscal 2025, respectively. We are in the process of implementing an approximate 1.5% menu price increase in the first quarter of fiscal 2026. Sales through the off-premise channel comprised approximately 21% of our restaurant sales during both fiscal 2025 and fiscal 2024. We account for each off-premise order as one customer for traffic measurement purposes. Therefore, average check is generally higher for off-premise orders as most of these orders are for more than one customer. 42 Table of Contents North Italia sales increased 15.5% to $345.9 million for fiscal 2025 compared to $299.6 million for fiscal 2024. North Italia average sales per restaurant operating week decreased 0.9% to $146,877 in fiscal 2025 from $148,231 in fiscal 2024. Average sales per restaurant operating week were impacted by the acceleration of new restaurant openings that have not matured. Total operating weeks at North Italia increased 16.5% to 2,355 in fiscal 2025 compared to 2,021 in the prior year. North Italia comparable sales decreased approximately 2% from fiscal 2024. The decrease from fiscal 2024 was primarily driven by decreased customer traffic of 5%, partially offset by an increase in average check of 3% (based on an increase of 4% in menu pricing, partially offset by a 1% negative impact from mix). We implemented menu price increases of approximately 2.0% and 1.5% in the second and fourth quarters of fiscal 2025, respectively. Flower Child sales increased 27.8% to $185.3 million for fiscal 2025 compared to $145.0 million for fiscal 2024. Flower Child sales per restaurant operating week increased 4.0% to $87,684 in fiscal 2025 from $84,351 in fiscal 2024. Total operating weeks at Flower Child increased 22.9% to 2,113 in fiscal 2025 compared to 1,719 in the prior year. Flower Child comparable sales increased approximately 5% from fiscal 2024. The increase from fiscal 2024 includes an increase of 3% in menu pricing. Other FRC sales increased 18.4% to $355.1 million for fiscal 2025 compared to $300.0 million for fiscal 2024. Other FRC average sales per restaurant operating week increased 0.2% to $132,733 in fiscal 2025 from $132,495 in fiscal 2024. Average sales per restaurant operating week are impacted by new restaurant openings as well as the concept mix and a decrease in comparable sales. Total operating weeks at Other FRC increased 18.2% to 2,675 in fiscal 2025 compared to 2,264 in the prior year. Restaurants become eligible to enter the comparable sales base in their 19th month of operation. At December 30, 2025, there were seven The Cheesecake Factory restaurants, nine North Italia restaurants and 11 Flower Child locations not yet in the comparable sales bases. International licensed locations and restaurants that are no longer in operation, including those which we have relocated, are excluded from comparable sales calculations. Food and Beverage Costs Food and beverage costs consist of raw materials and ingredients used in the food and beverage products sold in our restaurants and to our third-party bakery customers. As a percentage of revenues, food and beverage costs were 21.7% for fiscal 2025 compared to 22.5% for fiscal 2024, due primarily to favorable commodity inflation across most categories (0.5%) and a shift in sales mix (0.2%). The Cheesecake Factory restaurant menus are among the most diversified in the foodservice industry and, accordingly, are not overly dependent on a few select commodities. Changes in costs for one commodity sometimes can be offset by cost changes in other commodity categories. The principal commodity categories for our restaurants include general grocery items, dairy, produce, seafood, poultry, meat and bread. (See the discussion of our contracting activities in Part II, Item 7A — “Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.”) For new restaurants, food and beverage costs are typically higher for a period of time after opening until our management team becomes more accustomed to predicting and managing the sales volumes at these restaurants. Labor Expenses As a percentage of revenues, labor expenses, which include restaurant-level labor costs and bakery production labor, including associated fringe benefits, were 35.0% and 35.3% in fiscal 2025 and fiscal 2024, respectively. This decrease was primarily due to menu price increases in excess of wage rate inflation and improved staffing levels (0.5%) and the benefit from gift card breakage revenue (0.2%), partially offset by higher group medical cost due to larger claim activity (0.3%). For new restaurants, labor expenses are typically higher for a period of time after opening while our management team becomes more accustomed to predicting and managing the sales volumes at the new restaurants. 43 Table of Contents Other Operating Costs and Expenses Other operating costs and expenses consist of all other restaurant-level operating costs, the major components of which are occupancy expenses (rent, common area expenses, insurance, licenses, taxes and utilities), dining room and to-go supplies, repairs and maintenance, janitorial expenses, credit card processing fees, marketing including delivery commissions, incentive compensation, and bakery production overhead. As a percentage of revenues, other operating costs and expenses were 27.0% and 26.7% in fiscal 2025 and fiscal 2024, respectively. This variance was primarily driven by higher facility-related costs (0.2%). G&A Expenses G&A expenses consist of the restaurant management recruiting and training program, restaurant field supervision, corporate support and bakery administrative organizations, as well as gift card commissions to third-party distributors. As a percentage of revenues, G&A expenses were 6.5% and 6.4% for fiscal 2025 and fiscal 2024, respectively. This variance was primarily driven by a write-down of gift card inventory in fiscal 2025 (0.2%). Impairment of Assets and Lease Termination Expenses During fiscal 2025, we recorded $23.0 million of expense primarily related to the impairment of long-lived assets for one North Italia, one Grand Lux Cafe and four Other FRC locations (one previously partially impaired) and lease termination expense, net related to two Grand Lux Cafes (one that closed in fiscal 2023 and one that closed in early 2026) and one Other FRC (that closed in early 2026). During fiscal 2024, we recorded impairment of assets and lease terminations expense of $13.6 million primarily related to impairment of long-lived assets for one The Cheesecake Factory (previously partially impaired) and six Other FRC locations (one previously partially impaired), partially offset by lease termination income, net for four The Cheesecake Factory restaurants (including two relocations), one Grand Lux Cafe location, one Flower Child location, one Social Monk location and one Other FRC location (that closed in early fiscal 2025). See Notes 1 and 6 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part 1V, Item 15 of this report for further discussion of our long-lived and intangible assets. Acquisition-Related Contingent Consideration, Compensation and Amortization Expense We recorded $14.4 million and $2.4 million of expense during fiscal 2025 and 2024, respectively, of acquisition-related contingent consideration, compensation and amortization. In fiscal 2025, we recorded a $10.5 million increase in the fair value of the contingent consideration and compensation liability primarily stemming from updating the probability of achievement due to passage of time as well as recent performance and $3.9 million of amortization. In fiscal 2024, we recorded $4.3 million of amortization, partially offset by a $1.9 million decrease in the fair value of the contingent consideration and compensation liability primarily stemming from a change in the volatility factors, as well as a decrease in estimated fiscal 2025 revenues and future revenues utilized in the calculation. Preopening Costs Preopening costs were $33.1 million for fiscal 2025 compared to $27.5 million for fiscal 2024. We opened 25 restaurants in fiscal 2025 comprised of four The Cheesecake Factory, six North Italia, nine Other FRC, and six Flower Child locations compared to 23 restaurants in fiscal 2024 comprised of three The Cheesecake Factory (including two relocations), six North Italia, eight Other FRC, and six Flower Child locations. Restaurant-level preopening costs include all costs to relocate and compensate restaurant management staff members during the preopening period, costs to recruit and train hourly restaurant staff members, and wages, travel and lodging costs for our opening training team and other support staff members. Also included in preopening costs are expenses for maintaining a roster of trained managers for pending openings, the associated temporary housing and other costs necessary to relocate managers in alignment with future restaurant opening and operating needs. Preopening costs can fluctuate significantly from period to period based on the number, mix and timing of restaurant openings and the specific preopening costs incurred for each restaurant. 44 Table of Contents Loss on Extinguishment of Debt In fiscal 2025, we recorded a $15.9 million loss on early debt extinguishment. On February 28, 2025, we repurchased approximately $276.0 million aggregate principal amount of the 2026 Notes (as defined below) for aggregate consideration of $289.8 million, which included a premium of $13.8 million. The repurchase was accounted for as a debt extinguishment. In addition, we recorded $2.1 million of unamortized issuance costs. (See Note 10 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for further discussion on our debt.) Income Tax Provision In fiscal 2025, we had an income tax provision of $14.5 million, an effective tax rate of 8.9%, compared to an income tax provision of $14.3 million, an effective tax rate of 8.3%, in fiscal 2024. The increase was primarily due to a change to our reserve for uncertain tax positions (2.0%), non-deductible costs in fiscal 2025 associated with the repurchase of our 2026 Notes (1.6%) and a larger amount of non-deductible executive compensation (0.6%). These factors were offset by leverage on lower income before taxes, predominantly related to employment credits (0.9%), a tax windfall in fiscal 2025 as compared to a tax shortfall in fiscal 2024 related to equity compensation (2.2%) and lower state taxes in relation to income before taxes (0.3%). (See Note 17 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for further discussion of income taxes.) Non-GAAP Measures Adjusted net income, adjusted diluted net income per share and adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”) are supplemental measures of our performance that are not required by or presented in accordance with GAAP. These non-GAAP measures may not be comparable to similarly-titled measures used by other companies and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with GAAP. We calculate these non-GAAP measures by eliminating from net income, diluted net income per common share and EBITDA the impact of items we do not consider indicative of our ongoing operations. Additionally, EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA exclude the impact of certain non-cash transactions. We use these non-GAAP financial measures for financial and operational decision-making and as a means to evaluate period-to-period comparisons. Our inclusion of these adjusted measures should not be construed as an indication that our future results will be unaffected by unusual or infrequent items. In the future, we may incur expenses or generate income similar to the adjusted items. Following is a reconciliation from net income and diluted net income per common share to the corresponding adjusted measures (in thousands, except per share data): ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​   ​ ​ ​ 2025   ​ ​ ​ 2024 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Net income ​ $ 148,427 ​ $ 156,783 Impairment of assets and lease termination expenses ​ ​ 22,990 ​ ​ 13,647 Acquisition-related contingent consideration, compensation and amortization expenses ​ ​ 14,449 ​ ​ 2,429 Gift card adjustment, net (1) ​ (9,396) ​ ​ — Loss on extinguishment of debt (2) ​ ​ 15,891 ​ ​ — Uncertain tax positions (3) ​ ​ 2,023 ​ ​ — Tax effect of adjustments (4) ​ ​ (11,423) ​ ​ (4,180) Adjusted net income ​ $ 182,961 ​ $ 168,679 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Diluted net income per common share ​ $ 3.06 ​ $ 3.20 Impairment of assets and lease termination expenses ​ ​ 0.47 ​ ​ 0.28 Acquisition-related contingent consideration, compensation and amortization expenses ​ ​ 0.30 ​ ​ 0.05 Gift card adjustment, net (1) ​ ​ (0.19) ​ ​ — Loss on extinguishment of debt (2) ​ ​ 0.33 ​ ​ — Uncertain tax positions (3) ​ ​ 0.04 ​ ​ — Tax effect of adjustments (4) ​ (0.24) ​ ​ (0.09) Adjusted diluted net income per common share (5) ​ $ 3.77 ​ $ 3.44 (1) Represents gift card breakage revenue of $17.3 million as a result of a change in historical redemption patterns, partially offset by a non-recurring $7.9 million write-down of gift card inventory. 45 Table of Contents (2) See Note 10 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for further discussion on our debt. (3) Represents a reserve for uncertain tax position related to tenant improvement allowances and Section 199 deductions. Uncertain tax positions taken in a tax return are recognized in the financial statements when it is more likely than not that the position will be sustained upon examination by tax authorities based on technical merits, taking into account available administrative remedies and litigation. (4) Based on the federal statutory rate and an estimated blended state tax rate, the tax effect on all adjustments assumes a 26% tax rate. (5) Adjusted net income per share may not add due to rounding. Following is a reconciliation from net income to EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA measures (in thousands): ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​   ​ ​ ​ 2025   ​ ​ ​ 2024 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Net income ​ $ 148,427 ​ $ 156,783 Depreciation and amortization expenses ​ 109,031 ​ 101,450 Interest expense, net ​ 10,448 ​ 10,107 Income tax provision ​ 14,468 ​ 14,264 EBITDA ​ $ 282,374 ​ $ 282,604 Impairment of assets and lease termination expenses ​ 22,990 ​ 13,647 Acquisition-related contingent consideration, compensation and amortization expenses ​ 14,449 ​ 2,429 Gift card adjustment, net ​ ​ (9,396) ​ ​ — Loss on extinguishment of debt ​ ​ 15,891 ​ ​ — Stock-based compensation (1) ​ 27,234 ​ 29,962 Adjusted EBITDA ​ $ 353,542 ​ $ 328,642 (1) See Note 15 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for further discussion of stock-based compensation. Liquidity and Capital Resources Our corporate financial objectives are to maintain a sufficiently strong and conservative balance sheet to support our operating initiatives and unit growth while maintaining financial flexibility to provide the financial resources necessary to protect and enhance the competitiveness of our restaurant and bakery brands and to provide a prudent level of financial capacity to manage the risks and uncertainties of conducting our business operations under various economic and industry cycles. Typically, cash flows generated from operating activities are our principal source of liquidity, which we use to finance our restaurant expansion plans, ongoing maintenance of our restaurants and bakery facilities and investment in our corporate and information technology infrastructures. Similar to many restaurant and retail chain store operations, we utilize operating lease arrangements for all of our restaurant locations. Accordingly, our lease arrangements reduce, to some extent, our capacity to utilize funded indebtedness in our capital structure. We are not limited to the use of lease arrangements as our only method of opening new restaurants. However, we believe our operating lease arrangements continue to provide appropriate leverage for our capital structure in a financially efficient manner. 46 Table of Contents During fiscal 2025, our cash and cash equivalents increased by $131.5 million to $215.7 million. The following table presents, for the periods indicated, a summary of our key cash flows from operating, investing and financing activities (in millions): ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Fiscal Year ​   ​ ​ ​ 2025   ​ ​ ​ 2024 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Cash provided by operating activities ​ $ 301.3 ​ $ 268.3 Additions to property and equipment ​ ​ (146.2) ​ ​ (160.4) Repayments on credit facility ​ ​ (110.0) ​ ​ (20.0) Proceeds from long-term convertible debt ​ ​ 575.0 ​ ​ — Repayment on long-term convertible debt, including premium on extinguishment ​ ​ (289.8) ​ ​ — Issuance cost associated with long-term debt ​ ​ (16.5) ​ ​ — Proceeds from exercise of stock options ​ ​ 24.6 ​ ​ 12.5 Common stock dividends paid ​ ​ (52.2) ​ ​ (53.0) Treasury stock purchases, inclusive of excise tax ​ ​ (153.9) ​ ​ (18.2) ​ Cash Provided by Operating Activities Cash flows from operations increased by $33.0 million from fiscal 2024 primarily due to higher net income after excluding non-cash activity, timing of operating lease commencements and a decrease in inventory levels, partially offset by lower gift card liabilities, a decrease in prepaid expenses during fiscal 2024 due to a higher balance in fiscal 2023 related to the timing of January rent payments and higher income tax payments. Typically, our requirement for working capital has not been significant since our restaurant customers pay for their food and beverage purchases in cash or cash equivalents at the time of sale, and we are able to sell many of our restaurant inventory items before payment is due to the suppliers of such items. Property and Equipment Capital expenditures for new restaurants, including locations under development as of each fiscal year-end, were $70.5 million and $99.0 million for fiscal 2025 and 2024, respectively. Capital expenditures also included $63.2 million and $53.0 million for our existing restaurants and $12.5 million and $8.4 million for bakery and corporate capacity and infrastructure investments in fiscal 2025 and 2024, respectively. We opened 25 restaurants in fiscal 2025 comprised of four The Cheesecake Factory, six North Italia, nine Other FRC and six Flower Child locations compared to 23 restaurants in fiscal 2024 comprised of three The Cheesecake Factory, six North Italia, eight Other FRC and six Flower Child locations. We expect to open as many as 26 new restaurants in fiscal 2026 across our portfolio of concepts, with approximately one third of the openings occurring in the first half of fiscal 2026. We anticipate approximately $210 million in capital expenditures to support this level of unit development, as well as required maintenance on our restaurants. This estimate includes new restaurant construction expenses, some of which may be classified as operating lease assets instead of additions to property and equipment in the statement of cash flows. Credit Facility On October 6, 2022, we entered into a Fourth Amended and Restated Loan Agreement (the “Loan Agreement” and the revolving credit facility provided thereunder, the “Revolver Facility”). The Loan Agreement amends and restates in its entirety our prior credit agreement. The Revolver Facility, which terminates on October 6, 2027, provides us with revolving loan commitments that total $400 million, of which $50 million may be used for issuances of letters of credit. The Revolver Facility contains a commitment increase feature that, subject to certain conditions precedent, could provide for an additional $200 million in revolving loan commitments. Our obligations under the Revolver Facility are unsecured. Certain of our material subsidiaries have guaranteed our obligations under the Revolver Facility. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023, we borrowed and then repaid $15.0 million on the Revolver Facility. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024, we repaid $20.0 million on the Revolver Facility. In the first quarter of fiscal 2025, we repaid $110.0 million on the Revolver Facility. As of December 30, 2025, we had net availability for borrowings of $366.5 million, based on no outstanding debt balance and $33.5 million in standby letters of credit under the Revolver Facility. Under the Revolver Facility, we are subject to financial covenants, as well as to customary events of default that, if triggered, could result in acceleration of the maturity of the Revolver Facility. Subject to certain exceptions, the Revolver Facility also limits distributions with respect to our equity interests, such as cash dividends and share repurchases, based on a defined ratio, and also sets forth negative covenants that restrict indebtedness, liens, investments, sales of assets, fundamental changes and other matters. As of 47 Table of Contents December 30, 2025, we were in compliance with all covenants in effect at that date. (See Note 10 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for further discussion of our debt.) 2030 Convertible Senior Notes On February 28, 2025, we issued $575.0 million in aggregate principal amount of convertible senior notes (“2030 Notes”), which will mature on March 15, 2030, unless earlier repurchased, redeemed or converted. The net proceeds from the sale of the 2030 Notes were approximately $558.5 million after deducting issuance costs of $16.5 million. As of December 30, 2025, the 2030 Notes had a balance of $561.3 million, net of unamortized issuance costs of $13.7 million. As of December 30, 2025, the conversion rate for the 2030 Notes was 14.1377 shares of common stock per $1,000 principal amount of the 2030 Notes, which represents a conversion price of approximately $70.73 per share of common stock. In connection with the cash dividend that was declared by our Board on February 12, 2026, on March 4, 2026, we will adjust the conversion rate (which is expected to increase) and the conversion price (which is expected to decrease) of the 2030 Notes in accordance with the terms. (See Note 10 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for further discussion of our debt.) 2026 Convertible Senior Notes On June 15, 2021, we issued $345.0 million in aggregate principal amount of convertible senior notes (“2026 Notes”), which will mature on June 15, 2026, unless earlier repurchased, redeemed or converted. The net proceeds from the sale of the 2026 Notes were approximately $334.9 million after deducting issuance costs related to the 2026 Notes. On February 28, 2025, we used part of the net proceeds from the issuance of the 2030 Notes to repurchase approximately $276.0 million aggregate principal amount of the 2026 Notes in a privately-negotiated transaction for aggregate consideration of $289.8 million, which included a premium of $13.8 million. As of December 30, 2025, the 2026 Notes had a gross principal balance of $69.0 million and a balance of $68.8 million, net of unamortized issuance costs of $0.2 million. At December 30, 2025, the conversion rate for the 2026 Notes was 14.1644 shares of common stock per $1,000 principal amount of the 2026 Notes, which represents a conversion price of approximately $70.61 per share of common stock. In connection with the cash dividend that was declared by our Board on February 12, 2026, on March 4, 2026, we will adjust the conversion rate (which is expected to increase) and the conversion price (which is expected to decrease) of the 2026 Notes in accordance with the terms. (See Note 10 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for further discussion of our debt.) Common Stock Dividends Common stock dividends of $52.2 million and $53.0 million were paid in fiscal 2025 and 2024, respectively. As further discussed in Note 19 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report, in February 2026, our Board declared a quarterly dividend to be paid in March 2026. Future decisions to pay or to increase or decrease dividends are at the discretion of the Board and will be dependent on our operating performance, financial condition, capital expenditure requirements, limitations on cash distributions pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Loan Agreement and applicable law, and other such factors that the Board considers relevant. Share Repurchases Under authorization by our Board to repurchase up to 61.0 million shares of our common stock, we have cumulatively repurchased 59.9 million shares at a total cost of $1,983.6 million, excluding excise tax through December 30, 2025. In the first quarter of fiscal 2025, we used approximately $130.0 million of the net proceeds from the 2030 Note issuance to repurchase approximately 2.4 million shares of our common stock. In total, we repurchased 2.9 million shares at a cost of $153.9 million, excluding excise tax, during fiscal 2025. We repurchased 0.5 million shares at a cost of $18.0 million, excluding excise tax, during fiscal 2024. 48 Table of Contents Our objectives with regard to share repurchases have been to offset the dilution to our shares outstanding that results from equity compensation grants and to supplement our earnings per share growth. Our share repurchase program does not have an expiration date, does not require us to purchase a specific number of shares and may be modified, suspended or terminated at any time. Future decisions to repurchase shares are at the discretion of the Board and are based on several factors, including current and forecasted operating cash flows, capital needs associated with new restaurant development and maintenance of existing locations, dividend payments, debt levels and cost of borrowing, obligations associated with the FRC acquisition, our share price and current market conditions. The timing and number of shares repurchased are also subject to legal constraints and financial covenants under our credit facility that limit share repurchases based on a defined ratio. (See Notes 14 and 19 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for further discussion of our repurchase authorization and methods and increased authorized amount under our share repurchase program, respectively.) Contractual Obligations and Commercial Commitments The following table summarizes our undiscounted contractual obligations and commercial commitments as of December 30, 2025 (amounts in millions): ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​   ​ ​ ​ Payment Due by Period ​   ​ ​ ​ ​ ​   ​ ​ ​ Less than   ​ ​ ​ ​ ​   ​ ​ ​ ​ ​   ​ ​ ​ More than ​   ​ ​ ​ Total   ​ ​ ​ 1 Year   ​ ​ ​ 1‑3 Years   ​ ​ ​ 4‑5 Years   ​ ​ ​ 5 Years Contractual obligations ​   ​ ​   ​ ​   ​ ​   ​ ​   ​ Recorded contractual obligations: ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Operating lease liabilities (1) ​ $ 2,291.0 ​ $ 173.1 ​ $ 342.2 ​ $ 299.6 ​ $ 1,476.1 Debt ​ 644.0 ​ ​ 69.0 ​ ​ 575.0 ​ ​ — ​ ​ — Uncertain tax positions (2) ​ 5.0 ​ ​ — ​ ​ 5.0 ​ ​ — ​ ​ — Unrecorded contractual obligations: ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Purchase obligations (3) ​ ​ 135.0 ​ ​ 110.0 ​ ​ 24.1 ​ ​ 0.8 ​ ​ 0.1 Real estate obligations (4) ​ 392.9 ​ ​ 85.2 ​ ​ 50.4 ​ ​ 22.9 ​ ​ 234.4 Total ​ $ 3,467.9 ​ $ 437.3 ​ $ 996.7 ​ $ 323.3 ​ $ 1,710.6 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Other commercial commitments ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Standby letters of credit ​ $ 33.5 ​ $ 33.5 ​ $ — ​ $ — ​ $ — (1) Includes $817.4 million related to options to extend lease terms that are reasonably certain of being exercised. (See Note 11 in Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for discussion of leases.) (2) Represents liability for uncertain tax positions. (See Note 17 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for further discussion of income taxes.) (3) Includes obligations for inventory purchases, equipment purchases, information technology and other miscellaneous commitments. Amounts exclude agreements that are cancelable without significant penalty. (4) Real estate obligations include construction commitments, net of up-front landlord construction contributions, and legally binding minimum lease payments for leases signed but not yet commenced. Amounts exclude agreements that are cancelable without significant penalty. The FRC acquisition agreement also included a contingent consideration provision which is payable annually from 2022 through 2027 and is based on achievement of revenue and profitability targets for the FRC brands other than North Italia and Flower Child. The liability for this contingent consideration provision was $24.6 million at December 30, 2025. See Note 2 in Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for discussion of the fair value measurement for this liability. Cash Flow Outlook We believe that our cash and cash equivalents, combined with expected cash flows provided by operations and available borrowings under the Revolver Facility, will provide us with adequate liquidity for the next 12 months and the foreseeable future. As of December 30, 2025, we had no financing transactions, arrangements or other relationships with any unconsolidated entities or related parties. Additionally, we had no financing arrangements involving synthetic leases or trading activities involving commodity contracts. 49 Table of Contents Critical Accounting Estimates Critical accounting policies are those we believe are most important to portraying our financial condition and results of operations and also require the greatest amount of subjective or complex judgments by management. Judgments and uncertainties regarding the application of these policies may result in materially different amounts being reported under various conditions or using different assumptions. We consider the following policies to be the most critical in understanding the judgment that is involved in preparing our consolidated financial statements. Indefinite-Lived Intangible Assets Goodwill and other indefinite-lived intangible assets are not amortized and are tested for impairment annually as of the first day of our fiscal fourth quarter or on an interim basis if events or changes in circumstances between annual tests indicate a potential impairment. First, we determine if, based on qualitative factors, it is more likely than not that an impairment exists. Factors considered include, but are not limited to, historical financial performance, wage, product and services inflation, competitive environment, macroeconomic and industry conditions, results of prior impairment tests and share price performance. Any adverse change in these factors could have a significant impact on the recoverability of these assets and could have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. If the qualitative assessment indicates that it is more likely than not that an impairment exists, then a quantitative assessment is performed. The quantitative assessments require the use of estimates and assumptions regarding future cash flows and asset fair values. For the goodwill impairment test, the estimated fair value of the reporting units is determined using a blend of the income approach using a discounted cash flow analysis and the market capitalization approach. The fair value of the trade names and trademarks is estimated using the relief from royalty method. Key assumptions include projected revenue growth and operating expenses, discount rates, royalty rates and other factors that could affect fair value or otherwise indicate potential impairment. Estimates of revenue growth and operating expenses are based on internal projections and consider historical performance and forecasted growth, including assumptions related to the cost environment and macroeconomic and industry conditions. The discount rate is based on the estimated cost of capital that reflects the risk profile of the related business. These estimates, as well as the selection of comparable companies and valuation multiples used in the market approaches, are subjective, and our ability to realize future cash flows and asset fair values is affected by factors such as changes in economic conditions and operating performance. These fair value assessments could change materially if different estimates and assumptions were used. We did not record any impairment charges related to indefinite-lived intangible assets in fiscal 2025, 2024 or 2023. (See Note 1 in Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for further discussion of impairment testing.) Long-Lived Assets We assess the potential impairment of our long-lived assets on an annual basis or whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of the assets or asset group may not be recoverable. Factors considered include, but are not limited to, negative cash flow, significant underperformance relative to historical or projected future operating results, significant changes in the manner in which an asset is being used, an expectation that an asset will be disposed of significantly before the end of its previously estimated useful life and significant negative industry or economic trends. Assessing whether impairment testing is warranted and, if so, determining the amount of expense require the use of estimates and assumptions regarding future cash flows and asset fair values. Key assumptions include projected revenue growth and operating expenses, as well as forecasting asset useful lives and selecting an appropriate discount rate. Estimates of revenue growth and operating expenses are based on internal projections and consider the restaurant’s historical performance, the local market economics and the business environment. The discount rate is based on the yield curve rate for U.S. Treasury securities with a duration that coincides with the period covered by the cash flows. These estimates are subjective and our ability to realize future cash flows and asset fair values is affected by factors such as changes in economic conditions and operating performance. 50 Table of Contents In fiscal 2025, we recorded $23.0 million of expense primarily related to the impairment of long-lived assets for one North Italia, one Grand Lux Cafe and four Other FRC locations (one previously partially impaired) and lease termination related to two Grand Lux Cafes (one that closed in fiscal 2023 and one that closed in early 2026) and one Other FRC (that closed in early 2026). In fiscal 2024, we recorded impairment of assets and lease termination expenses of $13.6 million primarily related to impairment of long-lived assets for one The Cheesecake Factory (previously partially impaired) and six Other FRC locations (one previously partially impaired) and lease termination income, net for four The Cheesecake Factory restaurants, one Grand Lux Cafe location, one Flower Child location, one Social Monk location and one Other FRC location (that closed in early fiscal 2025). In fiscal 2023, we recorded $29.5 million of expense primarily related to the impairment of three The Cheesecake Factory (one previously impaired), one North Italia (previously impaired), one Other FRC and two Grand Lux Cafe lease terminations. (See Note 1 in Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for further discussion related to long-lived asset impairment.) Leases Lease terms include the build-out period for our leases where no rent payments are typically due under the terms of the lease, as well as options to renew when we deem we have significant economic incentive to exercise the extension. When determining if we have a significant economic incentive, we consider relevant factors, such as contractual, asset, entity and market-based considerations. Option periods are included in the lease term for the majority of our leases. Termination rights have not been factored into the lease terms since based on our probability assessment we are reasonably certain we will not terminate our leases. We cannot determine the interest rate implicit in our leases because we do not have access to the lessor’s estimated residual value or the amount of the lessor’s deferred initial direct costs. Therefore, we use our incremental borrowing rate as the discount rate for our leases. Our incremental borrowing rate for a lease is the rate of interest we would have to pay on a collateralized basis to borrow an amount equal to the lease payments under similar terms. Because we do not generally borrow on a collateralized basis, we derive an appropriate incremental borrowing rate using the interest rate we pay on our non-collateralized borrowings, adjusted for the amount of the lease payments, the lease term and the effect of designating specific collateral with a value equal to the unpaid lease payments for that lease. The reasonably certain lease term and the incremental borrowing rate for each restaurant location require judgment by management and can impact the classification and accounting for a lease as operating or finance, the value of the operating lease asset and liability and the term over which leasehold improvements for each restaurant are depreciated. These judgments may produce materially different amounts of operating lease assets and liabilities, rent expense and interest expense than would be reported if different assumptions were used. Recent Accounting Pronouncements See Note 1 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15 of this report for a summary of new accounting standards. ​