Despite robust double-digit revenue growth, the company's profitability remains structurally challenged, with a gross margin of 11.9% and an operating margin of only 0.1% in Q3 2026, indicating that cost of goods and SG&A are consuming nearly all gross profit.
Kura Sushi USA, Inc. (KRUS) annual income statement — 9-year revenue, gross profit & net income history
| Metric | TTM | Aug'25 | Aug'24 | Aug'23 | Aug'22 | Aug'21 | Aug'20 | Aug'19 | Aug'18 | Aug'17 |
|---|
| Sales/Revenue | 318.84M | 282.76M | 237.86M | 187.43M | 141.09M | 64.89M | 45.17M | 64.25M | 51.74M | 37.25M |
| Revenue Growth % | 18.39% | 18.88% | 26.91% | 32.84% | 117.42% | 43.67% | -29.69% | 24.16% | 38.91% | - |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 282.97M | 249.33M | 208.34M | 158.65M | 119.2M | 58.78M | 49.42M | 54.73M | 43.63M | 32.84M |
| COGS % of Revenue | - | 88.18% | 87.59% | 84.65% | 84.48% | 90.59% | 109.42% | 85.18% | 84.32% | 88.15% |
| Gross Profit | 35.87M | 33.43M | 29.52M | 28.78M | 21.89M | 6.11M | -4.25M | 9.52M | 8.12M | 4.42M |
| Gross Margin % | 11.25% | 11.82% | 12.41% | 15.35% | 15.52% | 9.41% | -9.42% | 14.82% | 15.68% | 11.85% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | - | 13.25% | 2.59% | 31.46% | 258.38% | 243.58% | -144.69% | 17.3% | 83.76% | - |
| Operating Expenses | 39.04M | 38.2M | 41.03M | 28.45M | 22.64M | 16.1M | 12.24M | 7.86M | 6.25M | 3.39M |
| OpEx % of Revenue | - | 13.51% | 17.25% | 15.18% | 16.05% | 24.81% | 27.11% | 12.23% | 12.08% | 9.1% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 38.79M | 37.75M | 39.05M | 28.04M | 22.29M | 15.7M | 12.06M | 7.75M | 5.96M | 3.36M |
| SG&A % of Revenue | - | 13.35% | 16.42% | 14.96% | 15.8% | 24.2% | 26.71% | 12.06% | 11.53% | 9.03% |
| Research & Development | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| R&D % of Revenue | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Operating Expenses | 249K | 448K | 1.98M | 410K | 355K | 396K | 180K | 110K | 287K | 25K |
| Operating Income | -3.16M | -4.76M | -11.51M | 332K | -754K | -9.99M | -16.5M | 1.66M | 1.86M | 1.03M |
| Operating Margin % | -0.99% | -1.68% | -4.84% | 0.18% | -0.53% | -15.39% | -36.53% | 2.59% | 3.6% | 2.76% |
| Operating Income Growth % | - | 58.62% | -3565.36% | 144.03% | 92.45% | 39.45% | -1093.26% | -10.84% | 81.4% | - |
| EBITDA | 9.54M | 9.29M | 282K | 8.16M | 4.86M | -9.59M | -13.34M | 3.83M | 3.54M | 2.4M |
| EBITDA Margin % | 2.99% | 3.28% | 0.12% | 4.36% | 3.44% | -14.78% | -29.53% | 5.96% | 6.84% | 6.43% |
| EBITDA Growth % | 633.85% | 3192.55% | -96.55% | 68.02% | 150.65% | 28.08% | -448.61% | 8.14% | 47.6% | - |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 12.3M | 14.05M | 11.79M | 7.83M | 5.61M | 396K | 3.16M | 2.17M | 1.68M | 1.37M |
| EBIT | -1.85M | -1.66M | -8.59M | 1.8M | -603K | -9.97M | -16.05M | 1.71M | 1.88M | 1.03M |
| Net Interest Income | 2.59M | 3.03M | 2.87M | 1.4M | 64K | -200K | 314K | -137K | -116K | -80K |
| Interest Income | 2.65M | 3.1M | 2.92M | 1.47M | 151K | 20K | 450K | 51K | 12K | 5K |
| Interest Expense | 64K | 70K | 47K | 69K | 87K | 220K | 136K | 188K | 128K | 85K |
| Other Income/Expense | 1.27M | 3.03M | 2.87M | 1.4M | 64K | -200K | 314K | -137K | -116K | -80K |
| Pretax Income | -1.9M | -1.73M | -8.64M | 1.74M | -690K | -10.19M | -16.18M | 1.52M | 1.75M | 947K |
| Pretax Margin % | -0.59% | -0.61% | -3.63% | 0.93% | -0.49% | -15.7% | -35.83% | 2.37% | 3.38% | 2.54% |
| Income Tax | 179K | 175K | 167K | 233K | 74K | 106K | 1.17M | 68K | 5K | 240K |
| Effective Tax Rate % | -9.44% | -10.12% | -1.93% | 13.43% | -10.72% | -1.04% | -7.25% | 4.46% | 0.29% | 25.34% |
| Net Income | -2.08M | -1.9M | -8.8M | 1.5M | -764K | -10.29M | -17.36M | 1.46M | 1.74M | 707K |
| Net Margin % | -0.65% | -0.67% | -3.7% | 0.8% | -0.54% | -15.87% | -38.43% | 2.27% | 3.37% | 1.9% |
| Net Income Growth % | 77.86% | 78.37% | -686.15% | 296.6% | 92.58% | 40.69% | -1292.17% | -16.42% | 146.39% | - |
| Net Income (Continuing) | -2.08M | -1.9M | -8.8M | 1.5M | -764K | -10.29M | -17.36M | 1.46M | 1.74M | 707K |
| Discontinued Operations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Minority Interest | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EPS (Diluted) | -0.17 | -0.16 | -0.79 | 0.14 | -0.08 | -1.21 | -2.08 | 0.26 | 0.22 | 0.09 |
| EPS Growth % | 77.73% | 79.75% | -664.29% | 278.12% | 93.5% | 41.83% | -900% | 18.18% | 145.81% | - |
| EPS (Basic) | - | -0.16 | -0.79 | 0.15 | -0.08 | -1.21 | -2.08 | 0.28 | 0.22 | 0.09 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 12.36M | 11.92M | 11.2M | 10.64M | 9.72M | 8.53M | 8.34M | 5.51M | 7.9M | 7.9M |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 12.15M | 11.92M | 11.2M | 10.3M | 9.72M | 8.53M | 8.34M | 5.28M | 7.9M | 7.9M |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying KRUS stock.
For fiscal year 2025, Kura Sushi USA, Inc. (KRUS) reported total revenue of $282.8M. This represents a 659.1% increase compared to $37.3M in 2017.
Kura Sushi USA, Inc. (KRUS) reported a net loss of $1.9M for the fiscal year ending 2025.
Kura Sushi USA, Inc. (KRUS) reported an operating income of $-4.8M, resulting in an operating profit margin of -1.7%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
Kura Sushi USA, Inc. (KRUS) generated $33.4M in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 11.8%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.
Key Metrics
Top Statement Risk
Persistent operating losses despite growth
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Robust Top-Line Growth Amidst Margin Volatility
Kura Sushi USA has demonstrated consistent double-digit revenue growth, with the most recent quarter showing a 16.2% year-over-year increase to $85.9 million, indicating strong demand for its restaurant concept despite a challenging cost environment.
The company's revenue trajectory has been consistently positive, with growth rates ranging from 13.3% to 30.4% over the past ten quarters. This suggests the brand is successfully expanding its footprint and capturing market share in the competitive restaurant sector. However, the growth has not yet translated into consistent profitability, highlighting a potential disconnect between top-line expansion and bottom-line efficiency.
Structural Margin Pressure from Cost of Goods
Gross margins have been volatile and remain structurally low, with the latest quarter at 11.9%, significantly below peer benchmarks like Texas Roadhouse's 12.4% and far below casual dining peers, suggesting limited pricing power or an unfavorable cost structure.
The company's gross margin has fluctuated between 8.2% and 14.0% over the period, indicating sensitivity to input costs and potential challenges in passing these costs to consumers. This structural pressure is a key constraint on profitability, as even modest improvements in SG&A leverage are offset by the thin gross margin base. The margin profile appears more akin to a high-volume, low-margin model, which requires exceptional operational execution to generate returns.
Operating Leverage Remains Elusive
Despite revenue growth, operating leverage has not materialized, with operating income swinging from a loss of $3.7 million in Q1 2026 to a marginal profit of $70,000 in Q3 2026, indicating that SG&A and other overhead costs are scaling nearly in line with sales.
The company's operating margin has been negative for six of the last ten quarters, and even in profitable quarters, it remains below 2%. This suggests that the current cost structure, particularly SG&A, is not yet optimized for the current revenue scale. The lack of meaningful operating leverage implies that further revenue growth alone may not be sufficient to drive material profitability improvements without concurrent cost discipline or a shift in the sales mix.
SG&A Discipline is the Key to Profitability
SG&A expenses have shown some discipline, declining from a peak of $13.4 million in Q4 2024 to $10.2 million in Q3 2026, but they still consume a substantial portion of gross profit, leaving minimal room for operating income.
The primary cost challenge for Kura Sushi USA is the combination of a low gross margin and a high SG&A burden. In the latest quarter, SG&A represented 11.9% of revenue, nearly equal to the gross margin itself. This leaves almost no buffer for operating profit. The recent trend of moderating SG&A is a positive sign, but the absolute level remains high relative to the gross profit generated, indicating that further efficiency gains or revenue scaling are critical to achieving sustainable profitability.
Q4 2025: A Brief Glimpse of Profitability
The fourth quarter of 2025 marked a notable inflection point, with the company achieving $1.5 million in operating income and a 1.8% operating margin, driven by a combination of higher revenue and improved gross margin to 13.7%.
This quarter stands out as the strongest operational performance in the dataset, demonstrating that profitability is achievable under the right conditions. The improvement was driven by both top-line growth (20.4% YoY) and a significant expansion in gross margin. However, this profitability was not sustained in the subsequent quarters, suggesting it may have been influenced by seasonal factors or one-time benefits rather than a permanent structural improvement. Investors should monitor whether the company can replicate this performance.
Growth Without Profitability is a Red Flag
The core analytical challenge is that Kura Sushi USA's impressive revenue growth has not translated into consistent profitability, with the company posting net losses in six of the last ten quarters despite double-digit sales increases.
A short-seller would focus on the disconnect between the company's growth narrative and its financial results. The persistent operating losses, even as revenue scales, raise questions about the long-term viability of the business model. The thin gross margins leave the company highly vulnerable to cost inflation, and the lack of operating leverage suggests that the path to profitability is not clear. Until the company can demonstrate sustained, profitable growth, the valuation premium associated with its growth rate may be difficult to justify.