US-based First Watch Restaurant Group has reported a net income of $7.2m for the first quarter (Q1) of 2024, down 23.4% from $9.4m in the same period of the previous year.

The company's total revenues increased by 14.7% to $242.4m from $211.4m in Q1 2023.

System-wide sales rose by 9.4% to $289.6m in the quarter from $264.7m in the same period of 2023.

First Watch's overall operational expenditures and expenses increased by 17.3% in Q1 2024 to $230.1m from $196.1m in Q1 2023.

Adjusted EBITDA [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation] for the quarter was $28.6m, marking an increase of 4.37% from the previous year's $27.4m.

Income from operations declined by 19.6% year-on-year to $12.3m.

The company opened nine system-wide restaurants across eight US states, bringing the total to 531 across 29 US states - 432 company-owned and 99 franchise-owned.

First Watch CEO and president Chris Tomasso said: “First Watch posted another solid quarter with positive same-restaurant sales, traffic trends that improved sequentially through the quarter and year-over-year adjusted EBITDA growth.

“We continue to focus on delivering exceptional experiences for our customers and our employees validated by customer experience scores that have never been higher and continued improvement in employee turnover.

“We remain confident in our long-term growth prospects driven by our proven portability and a total addressable market more than three times our current size.”

First Watch has updated its fiscal outlook for the year ending 29 December 2024.

The company anticipates same-restaurant sales growth to range from flat to 2%, with same-restaurant traffic growth expected to be in the negative low single digits.

Total revenue growth is forecast between 17% and 19%, with adjusted EBITDA projected between $106m and $112m. The company also plans to invest between $125m and $135m in capital expenditures, primarily for new restaurant projects and planned remodels.