Newport Beach-based Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) delivered better-than-expected results for its September quarter on Tuesday, even as construction of drive-thru lanes slows its store growth projections.
The company, which opened 25 new restaurants in the quarter ended Sept. 30, said it’s adding drive-thru lanes—it calls them “Chipotlanes”—to about half of their 80 locations under construction. That’s pushing some openings slated for this year into early next year, prompting store openings for fiscal 2019 to come in at the lower end of its guidance, Chipotle said.
The chain doesn’t franchise; all its 2,500 locations are company-owned, Irvine-based Habit Restaurants has in recent years also upped construction of drive-thru sites, which tend to cost slightly more than locations lacking the lane.
Chipotle reported revenue up 14.6% in the September quarter to $1.4 billion, edging analyst estimates of $1.38 billion.
It reported net income of $98.6 million, up from $38.2 million in the year-ago period, and above the $78.6 million analysts expected.
Chipotle is the second-largest public company based in OC as measured by its $21.9 billion market cap, and the second-largest restaurant chain based here, as measured by its annual revenue of $5.2 billion.
For more on OC’s public companies, see the Oct. 28 print edition of the Business Journal.
