Domino's (NYSE: DPZ) saw its shares hammered at Tuesday’s opening bell, as investors were disappointed in the company's third-quarter earnings that showed slower-than-expected sales growth.
Figures released Tuesday showed revenue increased 22.1% over the previous year to $786 million, falling short of the $788.1 million Wall Street had expected.
Net income during the third quarter beat analysts' expectations, rising 49.2% to $84.1 million, or $1.95 per share from $56.4 million, or $1.18 per share, a year ago. This exceeded analyst expectations of $1.75 per share, according to data compiled by Refinitiv, formerly Thomson Reuters.
Sales at locations open at least a year rose 6.3% during the quarter. Same-store sales growth, a key measure of performance for the industry, has risen for 30-straight quarters in the U.S. The last time the company posted a decline in same-store sales was the first quarter of 2011.
Domino’s said same-store sales at its company-owned stores in the U.S. grew 4.9%, but analysts expected it to grow by 6.2%.
Internationally, same-store sales jumped 3.3%, in-line with what was expected, marking nearly 25 years of positive same-store sales growth in international markets.
CEO Ritch Allison put it thus: "I continue to be proud of our great franchisees and operators around the world. In particular, our U.S. business once again executed at extremely high levels in the third quarter. Our global business, driven by strong retail sales growth and franchisee economics that outperformed the industry, continued its strong momentum."
Shares toppled $8.64, or 3.2%, to $264.30
