The company posted a loss of $296,000, or 2 cents a share, for the quarter, compared with a profit of $2.27 million, or 18 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, earnings were 8 cents a share; analysts polled by FactSet had expected 20 cents.

Sales rose 12% to $88.9 million, short of the $90.9 million projected by Wall Street. Through Thursday’s close, Kura Sushi shares had lost nearly a third of their value so far this year.

Chief Executive Hajime Uba said the company is working to protect margins amid consumer headwinds and tariffs that are raising costs. Kura Sushi has offset some tariff expenses by reducing labor requirements through the technological innovation central to its restaurant concept, he said.

For fiscal 2027, Kura Sushi expects total sales of $376 million to $381 million. Analysts had forecast $384.6 million.