Are you looking for restaurant stocks to invest in? If so, pay close attention to the following: On Thursday, as of 3:30 p.m. EDT, shares of Zoe’s Kitchen, Inc. (NYSE:$ZOES) were up 9.2%.

What caused the increase? Well, it all goes back to one analyst who upgraded shares of the Mediterranean-themed fast-casual restaurant chain ahead of its second quarter earnings report.

Elaborating further – and keeping in mind that Zoe’s Kitchen is scheduled to report second quarter earnings after today’s closing bell – Telsey Advisor Group upgraded Zoe’s stock from ‘market perform’ to ‘outperform’.

That said, Zoe’s Kitchen might just have luck on it’s side as today’s jump follows a similar positive move yesterday, which came when there was no company-specific news.

What’s Been Happening?

Taking into consideration today’s struggling restaurant-industry, Zoe’s stock is still down by more than 40% so far this year. As a result, Zoe’s posted a pair of painful quarterly reports earlier in 2017. However, Zoe’s has carried out numerous initiatives in an attempt to return to comparable-sales growth.

What Does the Future Look Like?

For context, Zoe’s Kitchen’s latest guidance – which was provided in May – forecast full-year 2017 revenue to be between the range of $314 million and $322 million. Additionally, 2017 comparable restaurant sales were forecast to be in the range of negative 3% to flat from last year.

As of right now, we do not know if Zoe’s Kitchen plans to echo or change that guidance. Regardless, tonight’s second quarter earnings report should provide some insight on whether the company’s efforts are yielding fruit.

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