Earnings season is in full swing. And these next few weeks, in particular, will feature a broad array of reports from high-profile stocks. While investors obviously can't tune in to every earnings report, two worth watching will be Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG 0.19%) and Tesla (TSLA -2.71%).
Chipotle has come into the spotlight this year as the company's operational execution, digital initiatives, and menu innovation have helped comparable restaurant sales beat expectations. Meanwhile, investors will be watching to see whether Tesla's higher Model 3 sales are finally helping the company become sustainably profitable.
Image source: Chipotle.
Chipotle
In Chipotle's second quarter, revenue jumped 13.2% year over year. Fueling this strong top-line growth was a 10% increase in comparable restaurant sales, or sales at stores in operation for at least 13 full calendar months. This extended a trend of accelerating growth in this key metric to a sixth consecutive quarter.
Given the company's strong momentum in the first half of the year, the company updated its outlook for comparable restaurant sales growth, forecasting growth in the high-single-digit percentage point range. This is up from a previous outlook for comparable restaurant sales growth to rise by a percentage point in the mid- to high-single-digit range.
Investors, therefore, should look for the quarter's comparable restaurant sales growth to be in line with management's full-year outlook for the metric.
The company has a number of key initiatives that are probably helping grow sales at existing stores, including the company's new rewards program, new menu items, and streamlined mobile ordering.
Investors can tune in to Chipotle's third-quarter update on Tuesday, Oct. 22, after the market closes.
Tesla
Electric-car maker Tesla has already reported its third-quarter deliveries. Total deliveries during the period came in at a record 97,000. That's up from about 84,000 deliveries in the year-ago period. The Model 3 accounted for all of Tesla's growth in vehicle deliveries, representing 82% of deliveries -- up from 57% in the year-ago quarter.
The big question Tesla investors have, however, is whether the company's rapidly growing sales of Model 3 are helping or hurting profits. In other words, investors will be looking to see whether Tesla achieved positive net income in Q3.
Since the vehicle has a much lower price point than the Model S and Model X, it's unclear whether the electric-car company has achieved the economies of scale needed for its Model 3 sales to help the company become profitable. Management certainly expected that to be the case when it reported its second-quarter results; Tesla said its business "has grown to the point of being self-funding." In addition, the company noted that it was aiming for positive net income in Q3 and beyond. But management added that "continuous volume growth, capacity expansion, and cash generation will remain the main focus" -- not GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) profitability.
Tesla is reporting its third-quarter results after the market closes on Wednesday, Oct. 23.
