Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) Q4 2023 earnings

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.