People visit a Chipotle restaurant in Miami on Feb. 9, 2022.
Joe Raedle | Getty Images
Chipotle Mexican Grill on Tuesday posted quarterly earnings and revenue that beat analysts’ expectations as more customers visited its restaurants.
Shares of the company rose more than 1% in extended trading.
Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:
- Earnings per share: $10.36 adjusted vs. $9.75 expected
- Revenue: $2.52 billion vs. $2.49 billion expected
Chipotle reported fourth-quarter net income of $282.1 million, or $10.21 per share, up from $223.7 million, or $8.02 per share, a year earlier. The company said higher beef, produce and queso costs weighed on margins.
Excluding certain items, the burrito chain earned $10.36 per share.
Net sales rose 15.4% to $2.52 billion.
The company’s same-store sales rose 8.4%, beating StreetAccount estimates of 7.1%. Chipotle said foot traffic rose 7.4% in the quarter, bucking an industry-wide trend of declining visits. Restaurant giants McDonald’s and Starbucks both reported traffic declines for the last three months of the year.
Chipotle’s sales also received a boost from a 3% menu price increase it implemented in October.
The company opened 121 new locations during the quarter.
Looking to 2024, Chipotle is forecasting full-year same-store sales growth in the mid-single-digit range and plans to open between 285 and 315 new locations.
