Credit: REUTERS/LUCY NICHOLSONJuly 16 (Reuters) - Domino's Pizza Inc DPZ.N on Thursday comfortably beat Wall Street estimates for quarterly same-restaurant sales, as diners ordered in more pies since dine-in options remain limited due to lockdowns triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The health crisis has nearly decimated the food industry as rising number of cases and stay-at-home orders have forced restaurants to shut dine-in options and layoff thousands of employees in an effort to reduce costs.
Domino's is one of the few restaurant chains to see a boost in sales as consumers sought the comfort of pizzas and relied on their fast delivery. Second quarter U.S. same-store sales surged 16.1%, beating analysts' estimates of 10.67%.
The largest pizza company said consumers' ordering behavior during the pandemic led to the sharp rise in numbers, helping it continue the positive sales momentum.
Domino's also introduced a new contactless carside delivery option for carryout orders, which allow diners to choose where they would like their order placed – the passenger side, back seat, trunk or the option to decide when it's ready.
For other fast-food chains such as McDonald's MCD.N and Burger King QSR.TO, drive-thru has been a major hit as well.
Several other casual restaurants in the country are now pivoting to a delivery model to keep their business running amid uncertainties.
For Domino's, total revenue rose 13.4% to $920 million in the quarter ended June 14 from a year earlier, above the expectation of $911.5 million, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
Net income rose to $118.7 million, or $2.99 per share, from $92.4 million, or $2.19 per share.
International same-store sales rose just 1.3%, but beat estimates of 0.65%.
(Reporting by Nivedita Balu in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)
((Nivedita.Balu@thomsonreuters.com; within U.S. +1 646 223 8780; outside U.S. +91 80 6749 4822/ Twitter: @niveditabalu;))
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