Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. CAKE scored 40.4, EXPE scored 67.6 — EXPE leads.
Compare another set
CAKE
The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated
Restaurants · Quality-Growth
40.4
$108.45 · $5.4B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
27.2
EXPE leads
EXPE
Expedia Group, Inc.
Travel Services · Quality-Growth
67.6
$274.22 · $32.9B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestEXPE17.1x
Fastest growthEXPE+7.6%
Strongest balance sheetEXPE2.30
Highest qualityEXPE87 / 100
Largest discount to fair valueEXPE-52%
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
Growth against the P/E multiple. Up and to the right is cheaper and faster — the quality-growth idea in one picture. Points beyond the axis are pinned to the edge and marked off-scale rather than allowed to compress everything else.
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
CAKE
stronger →← stronger
EXPE
66
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
87
64
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
50
16
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
71
EXPE is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
CAKE
EXPE
$205mC
FCF
$4.5bB
+4.7%C+
Rev
+7.6%B
4.01D
D/E
2.30C
29.4xC
P/E
17.1xB
1.83C+
PEG
0.71A-
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
CAKE
EXPE
57% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
52% below
~19%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~-7%/yr
-42%
1-yr DCF upside
+76%
-36%
5-yr DCF upside
+106%
-28%
10-yr DCF upside
+158%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
CAKE
Why this score
Raising its dividend
Durable high returns
EXPE
Why this score
Buying back stock
Raising its dividend
Durable high returns
Cyclical growth
The companies
CAKEThe Cheesecake Factory Incorporated
Restaurants · $108.45 · beta 1.04
Why now
Restaurants · market cap $5.4b. 8% off the 52-week high of $118.46. 14 sell-side analysts rate this a Hold with a mean 1-yr target of $97.43 (implying -10% upside).
Moat
ROE 39% — top-decile capital efficiency. Either pricing leverage, low capital intensity, or aggressive buybacks; the durability story depends on which. FCF converts 115% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
D/E 4.01 is elevated — limits strategic flexibility and raises refinancing exposure if rates stay higher for longer. Net margin 4.6% is thin — operating leverage cuts both ways; input-cost inflation or pricing pressure hits the bottom line first.
EXPEExpedia Group, Inc.
Travel Services · $274.22 · beta 1.36
Why now
Travel Services · market cap $32.9b. 20% off the 52-week high of $342.00. PEG 0.71 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 35 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $336.14 (implying +23% upside).
Moat
Net margin 13% beats the market median by a meaningful margin — the company is keeping more of every revenue dollar than the average S&P constituent. ROE 89% — top-decile capital efficiency. Either pricing leverage, low capital intensity, or aggressive buybacks; the durability story depends on which. Free cash flow runs well ahead of reported net income, mostly because of cash released from working capital ($1.5b) — a release that doesn't repeat every year the way earnings can.
Risk
D/E 2.30 is elevated — limits strategic flexibility and raises refinancing exposure if rates stay higher for longer.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where CAKE and EXPE diverge
On the headline score the gap is 27.2 points in favor of EXPE. They get there differently, though — each leads on a different pillar, so the better pick depends on which you weight.
ValueCAKE 15.6 · EXPE 71.2EXPE +55.6
QualityCAKE 66.3 · EXPE 86.7EXPE +20.4
GrowthCAKE 63.6 · EXPE 50.0CAKE +13.6
Pillars run 0–100. Value is judged against each company's own sector, so a Value score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.
Common questions
Is EXPE or CAKE the better stock?
EXPE scores higher: EXPE 67.6, CAKE 40.4 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
Where do EXPE and CAKE differ most?
The widest gap is value, where EXPE leads by 56 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. Neither name sweeps: they trade the lead across the three pillars, so the comparison is a trade-off rather than one being better on every measure.
How are EXPE and CAKE scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.