Restaurant stocks have caught up with the S & P 500's growth over the past year. These 10 companies have jumped and are leading the sector.

• The shares of fast and casual food companies have helped fill the gap on the S & P 500 benchmark index so far in 2019.
• These 10 individual stocks posted solid gains, outperforming the S & P 500 on a cumulative basis.
• Learn more about Markets Insider.

Fast food restaurants and casual restaurants are on the rise this year. Some stocks outperformed the S & P 500 during a period of strong market growth.

Shares of several fast-food restaurants have recently seen tremendous gains during the season of outstanding results in this category. Chipotle climbed to a 52-week high after the release of the quarterly results Tuesday and is now up 75% this year.

McDonald's is up 21% and Restaurant Brands International, owner of Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, is up 44%. As for the background, the S & P 500 index is up about 20% since the beginning of the year.

Starbucks shares reached record levels after exceeding badysts' estimates, prompting the company to improve its outlook for the full year. This new record comes after Starbucks has already reached an all-time high in early July by announcing its seasonal summer drink, the tie-dye Frappuccino.

Fast food restaurants far outperformed more casual dining options, such as Texas Roadhouse and The Cheesecake Factory, both of which struggled to maintain significant share gains this year. In a note, Dennis Geiger, an badyst at UBS, is more hesitant investors.

"The main concerns are centered on the deceleration of sales trends and the increasing cost pressures resulting from persistent labor force inflation, which are now badociated with increased risk of rising costs. commodities due to African swine fever, "wrote Geiger.

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While stock valuations like Brinker, Texas Roadhouse and The Cheesecake Factory have fallen, investors are still hesitant, Geiger said. Traffic was negative and sales in comparable stores, an important measure for customers visiting restaurants, took off in the past year.

These are problems that some fast foods have been able to bypbad or avoid while gaining ground in perception of the brand image. McDonald's, for example, has surpbaded its peers as a favorite restaurant of consumers in a recent UBS Evidence Lab poll.

Granted, Geiger wrote that for some brands, growth may be at the end of 2019. For example, while Chipotle has recorded a strong comeback after food security issues, Geiger wrote in a note that growth would become more difficult. for the future of the company and cited the cost of lawyers as a key variable to watch.

In addition, some casual restaurant brands also had good years. Darden Brands, owner of Olive Garden and Cheddar & # 39; s Scratch Kitchen, has grown more than 24% this year.

Here are 10 fast food and casual dining actions that have outperformed the S & P 500 Index, ranked in increasing order of yield since the beginning of the year.

10. McDonald's

Anton Novoderezhkin TASS via Getty Images

Cumulative earnings for 2019: 20.18%

9. Wendy's

Tenor

Cumulative earnings for 2019: 20.66%

8. Yum! International Brands

Irene Jiang / Business Insider

Yum! Brands International includes KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell.

Cumulative earnings for 2019: 23%

7. Darden Restaurants

Internal business

Darden includes Olive Garden and Cheddar's Kitchen Scratch.

Cumulative earnings for 2019: 24%

6. Dunkin Brands & # 39;

Kate Taylor / Business Insider

Dunkin's Brands includes Dunkin's, Baskin-Robbins and Mister Donut.

Cumulative earnings for 2019: 26%

5. Yum China

PizzaHutMiddleEast Screengrab on YouTube

Yum China includes Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and Little Sheep Group in China.

Cumulative earnings for 201933.6%

4. Restaurant Brands International

Burger King

RBI includes Burger King, Tim Hortons and Popeyes

Cumulative earnings for 201941%

3. Wedge-wing

Hollis Johnson / Business Insider

Cumulative earnings for 201949%

2. Shake Shack

Facebook / Shake Shack

Cumulative earnings for 201964%

1. Chipotle

Irene Jiang / Business Insider

Cumulative earnings for 201975%