(Bloomberg) -- Shake Shack Inc. quarterly sales beat Wall Street estimates as the burger chain said a new workforce model had raised its labor sales per hour to the highest level since 2019.
Same-store sales grew 4.4% in the three months ending Sept. 25, topping analyst estimates for 3.6%, and above 2.3% growth in the same period last year.
Shares gained 9.2% at 9:33 a.m. in New York Wednesday. Shake Shack had risen 53% this year through Tuesday’s close, compared with a 22% gain for the S&P 500 Index.
In a statement, the company said it was “laser focused on ways to improve our operations.” This included data reporting, improving food flow in kitchens and new worker schedules to better serve guests. These changes helped reduced customer wait times to the lowest level in over five years.
Chief Executive Officer Rob Lynch said on the investor call that “our No. 1 priority operationally is to improve our process flows and increase our speed of service.”
The chain’s total “shack count” reached 552, up from 547 at the end of the last quarter. It expects to add 80 to 85 more locations next year.
Lynch said on the call that while Shake Shack is known in New York City, the chain is “still at the infancy level in terms of really defining our brand” to customers across the rest of the US, in part through targeted digital ads and promotions.
Shake Shack has been seeking to lure customers with temporary offerings like its Black Truffle Burger, which it brought back last month.
Lynch has been focused on marketing, improved operations and drive-thru optimization, according to Michael Halen of Bloomberg Intelligence.
Shake Shack will be launching a loyalty program in the coming year, Lynch said on the call, though he added it “will not have a significant impact in 2025.”
--With assistance from Daniela Sirtori.
(Updates with share move in third paragraph.)
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