Out Fox The $treet

Fiesta Restaurant Group produced disappointing Q1 results highlighted my weak guidance. The company is feeling the growing pains of aggressively pushing the Pollo Tropical concept into several new markets from a South Florida base. The stock now trades at an extremely low valuation multiple providing a gift opportunity. The  quarterly results  for  Fiesta Restaurant Group (NASDAQ: FRGI )  were slightly disappointing, but the stock reaction was extreme. The main restaurant concept is moving from clustered in prime South Florida markets to multiple new markets outside of Florida. The shift provides for lumpy results that the market is extrapolating too much as weakness.  Read the f ull article on Seeking Alpha.  Disclosure: Long FRGI, ZOES. Please read the disclaimer page more details.

Habit Restaurants trades toward the lows following market disappointment with comp sales guidance. The company remains a leader in the premium burger category primed for long-term store expansion. The stock is a bargain trading at a discount to other top restaurant chains. After the recent market rebound,  Habit Restaurants (NASDAQ: HABT )  offers one of the few stocks still trading close to the lows. The premium burger chain disappointed the market with discussions on the  earnings call  around promotional activity in the sector and higher labor costs. Read the full article at Seeking Alpha.  Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details.

After a huge surge in February last year, Buffalo Wild Wings (NASDAQ: BWLD ) has gone virtually sideways. The stock had a huge day on February 7 where it surged from $70 to $82.50 yet the next year has seen nothing but disappointment for investors. The company operates and franchises Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar restaurants with nearly 900 restaurants in 49 states and Canada. The restaurants feature a variety more » Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

The fast casual dining sector has been on fire this year basically picking up where it has been ever since the March 2009 bottom. The three leading stocks of Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD) , Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) , and Panera Bread (PNRA) have had virtually no pause in the rally for the last three years. Not even the market downturns in 2010 and 2011 could pull them down. Though continuing to grow fast all these stocks face steep valuations and at some point the wall of large numbers will hit them. Chipotle already has a market cap over $11B and annual sales above $2.2B. As an example, Darden Restaurants (DRI) with its main restaurants of Olive Garden and Red Lobster has succumbed to much lower multiples even though operating several successful chains. The company will approach $8B in fiscal 2012 revenue, but only has a market cap of $6.4B. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha. Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details.  ...

Amazing to see a stock liftoff to a all time high in this market, but Panera Bread (PNRA) achieved that feat today. After a rocky summer, PNRA has rocked higher. The below 3 year chart sure suggests how individual stock picking can easily beat index funds. Of course this isn't a stock that I've ever owned. PNRA has never seemed like the stock with a catalyst for this type of growth nor one worth a 25 forward PE, but clearly I've been very wrong. Congrats to all the longs that have held on. While all the high flying internet stocks especially the recent IPOs like Groupon (GRPN) have been crushed, PNRA keeps creeping higher. Very impressive chart. Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details.