Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) rose as much as 8% in premarket trading after the company reported quarterly earnings that topped Wall Street expectations.
Menu price hikes helped offset inflation without hurting customer demand, said Chipotle. The company reported earnings per share of $5.58 U.S. compared to $5.25 U.S. that had been expected. Revenue amounted to $1.96 billion U.S. versus $1.96 billion U.S. that was expected.
Chipotle reported fourth-quarter net income of $133.48 million U.S., or $4.69 U.S. per share, down from $190.96 million U.S., or $6.69 U.S. per share, a year earlier. The company paid more for beef, avocados and freight during the fourth quarter. Its workers also earned higher wages in the period.
Net sales at Chipotle rose 22% to $1.96 billion U.S., meeting analyst expectations. Same-store sales climbed 15.2%. Chipotle credited menu price hikes, strong online sales, and demand for its limited-time smoked brisket for its sales growth in the quarter.
Chipotle said it has raised menu prices by 6% in 2022. Compared with a year ago, customers are paying about 10% more for their orders.
Looking forward to the next quarter, Chipotle is forecasting same-store sales growth in the mid- to high-single digits. Analysts are expecting same-store sales to rise 8.9% during the first three months of this year.
For 2022, Chipotle is also forecasting between 235 to 250 new restaurant openings, assuming permitting and construction delays due to the pandemic don’t worsen. It opened 78 new locations in the fourth quarter.
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