Mexican fast-food chain Chipotle (NYSE: CMG) met Wall Street’s revenue expectations in Q2 CY2026, with sales up 9.3% year on year to $3.35 billion. Its non-GAAP profit of $0.33 per share was 4% above analysts’ consensus estimates.
Is now the time to buy Chipotle? Find out by accessing our full research report, it’s free.
Chipotle (CMG) Q2 CY2026 Highlights:
- Revenue: $3.35 billion vs analyst estimates of $3.33 billion (9.3% year-on-year growth, in line)
- Adjusted EPS: $0.33 vs analyst estimates of $0.32 (4% beat)
- Operating Margin: 15.7%, down from 18.2% in the same quarter last year
- Free Cash Flow Margin: 13.8%, similar to the same quarter last year
- Same-Store Sales rose 2.2% year on year (-4% in the same quarter last year)
- Market Capitalization: $42.98 billion
"Our positive results reflect the momentum we're building as our Recipe for Growth strategy continues to take shape," said Scott Boatwright, Chief Executive Officer, Chipotle.
Company Overview
Born from a desire to offer quick meals with fresh, flavorful ingredients, Chipotle (NYSE: CMG) is a fast-food chain known for its healthy, Mexican-inspired cuisine and customizable dishes.
Revenue Growth
Examining a company’s long-term performance can provide clues about its quality. Any business can have short-term success, but a top-tier one grows for years.
With $12.42 billion in revenue over the past 12 months, Chipotle is one of the most widely recognized restaurant chains and benefits from customer loyalty, a luxury many don’t have. Its scale also gives it negotiating leverage with suppliers, enabling it to source its ingredients at a lower cost.
As you can see below, Chipotle’s sales grew at an impressive 13.3% compounded annual growth rate over the last seven years as it opened new restaurants and expanded its reach.
This quarter, Chipotle grew its revenue by 9.3% year on year, and its $3.35 billion of revenue was in line with Wall Street’s estimates.
Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 10.3% over the next 12 months, a deceleration versus the last seven years. We still think its growth trajectory is attractive given its scale and indicates the market is baking in success for its menu offerings.
ONE MORE THING: The $21 AI Application Stock Wall Street Forgot. While Wall Street obsesses over who’s building AI, one company is already using it to print money. And nobody’s paying attention.
AI chip stocks trade at ridiculous valuations. This company processes a trillion consumer signals monthly using AI and trades at a third of the price. The gap won’t last. The institutions will figure it out. You need to see this first. Read the FREE Report Before They Notice.
Restaurant Performance
Number of Restaurants
A restaurant chain’s total number of dining locations often determines how much revenue it can generate.
Chipotle opened new restaurants at a rapid clip over the last two years, averaging 8.5% annual growth, much faster than the broader restaurant sector.
When a chain opens new restaurants, it usually means it’s investing for growth because there’s healthy demand for its meals and there are markets where its concepts have few or no locations.
Note that Chipotle reports its restaurant count intermittently, so some data points are missing in the chart below.
Same-Store Sales
The change in a company’s restaurant base only tells one side of the story. The other is the performance of its existing locations, which informs management teams whether they should expand or downsize their physical footprints. Same-store sales is an industry measure of whether revenue is growing at those existing restaurants and is driven by customer visits (often called traffic) and the average spending per customer (ticket).
Chipotle’s demand within its existing dining locations has barely increased over the last two years as its same-store sales were flat. Chipotle should consider improving its foot traffic and efficiency before expanding its restaurant base.
In the latest quarter, Chipotle’s same-store sales rose 2.2% year on year. This growth was an acceleration from its historical levels, which is always an encouraging sign.
Key Takeaways from Chipotle’s Q2 Results
We enjoyed seeing Chipotle beat analysts’ same-store sales expectations this quarter. We were also happy its revenue was in line with Wall Street’s estimates. Overall, this print had some key positives. The stock traded up 5.2% to $36.26 immediately after reporting.
Chipotle put up rock-solid earnings, but one quarter doesn’t necessarily make the stock a buy. Let’s see if this is a good investment. If you’re making that decision, you should consider the bigger picture of valuation, business qualities, as well as the latest earnings. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).
