Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE:CMG) rallied on Thursday after the American quick-service restaurant chain posted first-quarter profit and sales that handily beat Wall Street analyst expectations.
Chipotle shares jumped 13.4% to US$384.94 shortly before the opening bell in New York.
For the quarter ended March 31, Chipotle reported earnings of US$2.13 per share on revenue of US$1.1bn. The consensus earnings estimate was US$1.54 per share on revenue of US$1.2bn.
Investors cheered the results as Chipotle has struggled for over two years to win back customers after a series of food safety scares.
To revitalize the brand, Chipotle named Brian Niccol, formerly chief executive of Taco Bell, its new CEO in February, in place of founder Steve Ells.
READ: Chipotle turns to Taco Bell boss to revive its fortunes
“The opportunity is clearly a recovery story in the U.S.,” said Niccol in an earnings call.
Nicol who has an industry reputation for marketing and technology, said Chipotle will be focusing heavily on digital, marketing and menu innovation.
For 2018, the company expects comparable restaurant sales to increase in the low-single digits. It also expects to open between 130 and 150 new restaurants.
Same-store sales at Chipotle for the quarter were up 2.2%, higher than the 1.3% analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.