CHIPOTLE ANNOUNCES THIRD QUARTER 2026 RESULTS

Key Points:

• Chipotle Mexican Grill reported a 9.6% increase in total revenue to $3.3 billion for Q3 2026, driven by new restaurant openings and a 2.1% rise in comparable restaurant sales, marking the third consecutive quarter of positive transaction growth.
• The company opened 84 new company-owned restaurants, including 53 with Chipotlanes, and five international partner-operated locations, supporting digital sales growth which reached 38.8% of total food and beverage revenue.
• Operating margins declined, with operating margin down to 13.7% from 15.9%, and restaurant-level operating margin falling to 23.3% from 24.5%, while diluted earnings per share decreased 6.9% to $0.27.
• Food and packaging costs improved slightly to 29.5% of revenue due to pricing and tariff relief, but labor costs rose to 25.7% of revenue due to wage inflation and increased staffing expenses.
• For 2026, Chipotle expects low single-digit comparable sales growth and plans to open 350-370 new restaurants, with continued expansion into international markets and increased deployment of Chipotlanes, while anticipating an effective tax rate between 24% and 26%.