DENVER Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc., operator of 640 namesake burrito restaurants, continued to buck the industry trends of stalled sales and squeezed profits with a near 40-percent year-to-year jump in second-quarter revenue and an 85.1-percent rise in profit.
Same-store sales at Chipotle locations open more than 13 months increased 11.6 percent.
The company said menu price increases associated with the chain’s use of naturally raised meats, efficient use of labor and other unit-level cost controls helped improve restaurant margins.
Net income for the second quarter ended June 30 totaled $20 million, or 60 cents per share, compared to $10.8 million, or 33 cents per share in the year-earlier second quarter.
Corporate revenue for the latest three-month period totaled $274.3 million.
Because of the strong sales momentum, Chipotle increased its annual same-store sales projection to the “high single to low double digit range.” The company also said that it expects to reach its goal of opening between 110 to 120 new restaurants this year, and that it “remained confident” it would post per-share earnings growth of at least 25 percent for the year.