World News – US – Chipotle shares fall despite beating earnings, strong growth in shipments weighing on earnings

Chipotle Mexican Grill on Wednesday reported quarterly same-store sales growth of more than 8%, but the move to delivery increases costs and resulting in fewer beverage purchases, which has lowers its bottom line

Here’s what the company reported for the quarter ended September 30 compared to what Wall Street expected, according to an analyst survey by Refinitiv:

Chipotle reported third quarter net profit of $ 802 million or $ 2.82 per share, up from $ 98.6 million or $ 3.47 per share a year earlier Higher volume of orders for deliveries and steaks and a beef more expensive increased costs, which were partially offset by increases in menu prices, lower consumption of salsa and lower avocado prices

Excluding $ 28.7 million in legal fees and other items, the burrito chain earned $ 3.76 per share, exceeding the $ 3.47 per share expected by analysts polled by Refinitiv

Net sales increased 141% to $ 1.6 billion, narrowly beating expectations of $ 1.59 billion Comparable store sales increased 83% for the quarter, peaking in August Strong demand subsided continued in September, but the company saw higher same-store sales growth due to the launch of its carne asada option last year in the same month

For the second quarter in a row, digital sales more than tripled Online orders accounted for almost half of all sales and about half of Chipotle’s digital customers opted to have their orders delivered

Delivery service revenue, which includes delivery and service charges paid by customers to Chipotle through its app and website, accounts for 13% of its revenue The company said the revenue billed to customers did not fully cover the commission fees it paid to third-party delivery providers, such as DoorDash and Grubhub

Chipotle again declined to provide an outlook for 2020, citing the uncertainty of the pandemic

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Chipotle Mexican Grill, Earnings, Stocks, NYSE: CMG