MeritValue

GEN Restaurant Group, Inc.

GENKdata completeness 100%4 fiscal years on file
The thesis, from the filings

GEN Restaurant Group, Inc. earns about 26% on invested capital, but has diluted owners by 22% over 4 years — worth asking whether the growth reaches owners. The applicable estimate puts fair value near $9.03 a share.Whether it’s worth owning at today’s price is the last question — and yours to answer, below.

i. The business — what you’d actually own
FigureFY 2022FY 2023FY 2024FY 2025
Revenue$163.7M1$181M2$208.4M3$212.5M3
Net income$10.3M4$8.41M5$592,0006−$3.03M6
Operating cash flow$23.4M7$22.2M8$17.8M9$3.41M9
Capital expenditure$8.1M10$17.2M11$23.8M12$27.7M12
Free cash flow (derived)$15.3M7$5.01M8−$6M9−$24.3M9
Total debt—$9.42M13$13.7M14$27.2M15
Cash & equivalents$11.2M16$32.6M17$23.7M18$2.82M18
Diluted shares—4.2M4.7M5.2M

Superscripts are receipts. Each links to the SEC filing the number came from (full list at the bottom).

ii. Your slice — ownership made literal
If you owned
shares
Net assets behind them
$51.33
your share of equity
Profit it earned you last year
−$5.86
Free cash flow it threw off
−$47.1
Debt you’d be carrying
$52.7

10 shares is a claim on $51.33 of net worth that earned you −$5.86 and generated −$47.1 of cash last year, against $52.7 of debt.

iii. Is this a good business?
Moat signal · return on invested capital
26% avg · 4y
FY22 —FY23 94%FY24 16%FY25 -32%

It earned an average 26% on invested capital over 4 years. Compare that to what it costs to fund the business.

seeing a moat in the numbers →
Management signal · capital allocation
+22% shares · 4y

Share count is up 22% over 4 years — owners have been diluted. Worth asking what they got for it. Total debt has risen 189% over the same window.

reading capital allocation →

Signals, not verdicts — read from the filings above. Numbers don’t prove a moat; they show its footprint. You decide.

iv. What it’s worth — engine v0.1.0
DCF · Growth Exit 10Y
not applicable
3y-median FCF non-positive — growth-exit DCF not applicable (see EPV)
DCF · Growth Exit 5Y
not applicable
3y-median FCF non-positive — growth-exit DCF not applicable (see EPV)
Earnings Power Value
$9.03
assumptions (8)
  • riskFreeRate4.7%
  • equityRiskPremium5.0%
  • beta100.0%
  • equityWeight85.0%
  • costOfDebtSpread1.5%
  • taxRate21.0%
  • normalizedEarnings$4.5M
  • growthAssumed0.0%
Graham Number
not applicable
diluted EPS missing or non-positive — Graham Number undefined

Different models answer different questions — which to trust when →

Sources — the receipts
  1. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-027323 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  2. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-035772 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  3. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001193125-26-134555 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  4. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-027323 (NetIncomeLoss)
  5. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-035772 (NetIncomeLoss)
  6. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001193125-26-134555 (NetIncomeLoss)
  7. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-027323 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  8. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-035772 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  9. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001193125-26-134555 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  10. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-027323 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  11. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-035772 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  12. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001193125-26-134555 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  13. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-027323 (LongTermDebtNoncurrent)
  14. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-035772 (LongTermDebtNoncurrent)
  15. 10-K · period ending 2025-12-31 · accession 0001193125-26-134555 (LongTermDebtNoncurrent)
  16. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-027323 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  17. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-035772 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  18. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001193125-26-134555 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)