Here comes Chipotle...
- Chipotle is set to report fourth-quarter earnings after Wednesday's closing bell.
- Shares of the burrito chain had fallen as much as 65% since October 2015, when an E. coli outbreak that was linked to Chipotle expanded to multi-states.
- Shares have rebounded more than 100% since new CEO Brian Niccol was appointed in February 2018.
- Watch Chipotle trade live.
Chipotle is set to report fourth-quarter earnings after Wednesday's closing bell. Here's what Wall Street analysts are expecting, according to Bloomberg data:
- Earnings per share: $1.38
- Revenue: $1.19 billion
Shares of the burrito chain had fallen as much as 65% since October 2015, when an E. coli outbreak that was linked to Chipotle expanded to multi-states. However, since the appointment of CEO Brian Niccol, in February 2018, the stock has rebounded more 100%.
Under the management of Niccol, the former head of rival Yum Brand's Taco Bell, Chipotle has heavily invested in digital ordering and delivery, and increased its share buyback program.
Entering 2019, Chipotle's biggest challenge is workers' skyrocketing pay, just like many other restaurants, Niccol told Business Insider last month at the ICR Conference - an event with many restaurant executives and investors attending. He said that Chipotle was considering raising prices as minimum wages rise, but that investors shouldn't panic.
"Every cost in the business is a challenge," Niccol told Business Insider. "The good news is we have a model that we can invest in our labor. And, we will use sales growth coupled with some pricing to handle it."
Chipotle was up 19% this year through Wednesday.
Now read:
- From Denny's to Chipotle, chains' CEOs say the biggest challenge in 2019 is workers' skyrocketing pay
- Chipotle is considering raising prices as minimum wages rise, but the CEO says not to panic - they 'don't want to be like Whole Foods'
