Granahan Investment Management said its Focused Growth Strategy added to Kura Sushi USA after an 18% Q2 share decline. The letter said Kura had raised full-year comparable-sales guidance to modestly positive and was growing its unit count at a 20%+ annual pace.
GIM said the stock's 18% quarterly fall detracted 146 basis points from relative performance and that its Kura holding remained average-sized. It said longtime CFO Jeff Uttz's April departure, with CEO Hajime Uba stepping in on an interim basis, unsettled investors; it also cited limited market patience for a consumer-growth stock with modest near-term comps amid demand for AI exposure.
The firm said restaurant-level margin targets were maintained and Kura could absorb cost inflation with moderate price increases, improving its value proposition. GIM sees potential for at least 300 U.S. restaurants. KRUS closed at $38.91 on Sept. 24, down 20.98% over the past month and 39.50% over the year. Insider Monkey's database counted 24 hedge-fund portfolios holding shares at Q2 end, down from 29 the prior quarter.
