Chipotle Mexican Grill(US:CMG) Benzinga·2025-10-30 09:42Core Insights - Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. experienced a significant drop in share price, falling 17.58% to $32.77 in pre-market trading following the release of its third-quarter results and a downward revision of its full-year guidance [1] Financial Performance - The company reported third-quarter revenue of $3 billion, reflecting a 7.5% increase year-over-year [2] - Comparable restaurant sales rose by 0.3%, driven by a 1.1% increase in average check size, although this was partially offset by a 0.8% decline in customer traffic [2] - The operating margin decreased to 15.9% from 16.9% year-over-year, while the restaurant-level operating margin fell to 24.5% from 25.5% [2] Cost Structure - Food, beverage, and packaging costs accounted for 30% of total revenue, a slight decrease from 30.6% in the previous year, although inflation in beef and chicken and newly enacted tariffs partially offset this decline [3] - Labor costs represented 25.2% of total revenue, up from 24.9% a year earlier, primarily due to lower sales volumes and wage inflation, though this was partially mitigated by planned menu price increases in 2024 [4] Future Outlook - Management now anticipates low-single-digit declines in comparable restaurant sales for the entire year of 2025 [5] - The company opened 84 new restaurants in the third quarter, including 64 with a Chipotlane [5] - Diluted earnings per share increased to 29 cents, up 3.6% from 28 cents in the same period last year [5] Stock Performance - Year-to-date, Chipotle's stock is down 33.61%, with a 52-week trading range of $38.30 to $66.74 and a market capitalization of $53.31 billion [6]