Chipotle Serves Up Tasty Numbers

Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG Quote - Cramer on CMG - Stock Picks) reported some delicious results for the first quarter ended March 31 during its Tuesday conference call, defying many of the problems that made it a tough quarter for other restaurateurs.

The casual fast-food chain specializing in gourmet Mexican burritos saw first-quarter earnings of 38 cents a share on revenue of $236.1 million, beating Street estimates of 32 cents on $228 million and providing a quarterly revenue gain of 26.2% vs. the same period just one year ago.

Management also reiterated its intention to grow EPS at 25% in the long term and even added an "at least" to that statement, indicating that 25% may turn out to be a conservative number. On top of that, restaurant operating margins during the quarter increased in spite of higher operating costs.

As a result, Chipotle's stock went flying upward in after-hours trading Tuesday, blowing through its all-time high of $68, hit only Monday. The stock was trading around $78 Wednesday afternoon, up more than 18%.

As I mentioned on my last conference call review, the fact that Chipotle is a relatively fast-growing chain helps make its same-store (referring to restaurants open at least 13 months) numbers look good. This time around, same-store sales rose by 8.3%, and management said it expects that number to remain consistent throughout the year. I was also pleased to hear that Chipotle plans its largest expansion yet, hoping to open 120 new restaurants this year alone.

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