Summary
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) reported strong first-quarter 2014 results, demonstrating robust top-line growth driven by both comparable restaurant sales increases and new store openings. Revenue jumped 24.4% year-over-year, with comparable sales up 13.4%, primarily due to increased customer visits. This growth was achieved despite headwinds such as rising food costs, particularly for beef and avocados, which led to a 30.1% increase in food, beverage, and packaging costs and a slight deleveraging of this expense as a percentage of revenue. The company continued its expansion, opening 44 new restaurants in the quarter and anticipating 180-195 openings for the full year. Profitability was supported by improved labor and occupancy cost leverage, but was partially offset by a significant increase in general and administrative expenses, largely due to higher stock-based compensation and litigation costs. The company also announced a new $100 million share repurchase authorization, signaling confidence and a commitment to returning capital to shareholders.
Financial Highlights
42 data points| Operating Expenses | $768.51M |
| Operating Income | $135.65M |
| Net Income | $83.07M |
| EPS (Basic) | $0.05 |
| EPS (Diluted) | $0.05 |
| Shares Outstanding (Basic) | 1.55B |
| Shares Outstanding (Diluted) | 1.57B |
Key Highlights
- 1Total revenue increased by 24.4% to $904.2 million for the three months ended March 31, 2014, compared to $726.8 million in the prior year period.
- 2Comparable restaurant sales grew by a strong 13.4%, driven primarily by an increase in customer visits.
- 3The company opened 44 new restaurants in the first quarter of 2014, bringing the total to 1,637, and plans to open 180-195 new restaurants in fiscal year 2014.
- 4Food, beverage, and packaging costs as a percentage of revenue increased to 34.5% from 33.0% year-over-year due to inflationary pressures on key ingredients like beef and avocados.
- 5General and administrative expenses saw a significant increase of 51.4%, largely attributed to higher non-cash stock-based compensation expense and increased litigation costs.
- 6Diluted earnings per share (EPS) rose to $2.64 from $2.45, reflecting the revenue growth and operational improvements.
- 7Chipotle announced an additional $100 million share repurchase authorization, in addition to the remaining $77.5 million available under the existing program as of March 31, 2014.