Domino's Pizza (DPZ 0.17%) is in no danger of running out of cash. The pizza delivery leader posted an operating update on Wednesday that showed surging demand through most of April and May equating to a record start to the fiscal second quarter.
Sales rose 16% at U.S. locations over the past two months, including a 22% spike in the four weeks that ended on May 17. Rival Papa John's International said in its own filing that sales rose by over 30% through May 24.
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Domino's management was careful to note that the surge was fueled in part by unique and temporary factors. "We are seeing a tailwind as consumer behavior across the restaurant industry has shifted toward delivery and carryout," CEO Ritch Allison said in a press release, "though we are not sure whether this trend will continue for the remainder of the second quarter or how long this tailwind might last."
Still, executives were pleased enough with the growth, and the related cash flow spike, that they repaid a large chunk of the debt they took on when the pandemic first struck the industry. Domino's erased $100 million of the extra $158 million it borrowed in March.
The chain said it believes this will be its last intra-quarter update, and it aims to resume normal operating releases with its upcoming second-quarter earnings report on July 16.
