Domino’s Pizza sales in the United States increased less than expected in the fourth quarterwhich highlights the growing challenge to attract Americans with liquidity problems.
Sales in comparable stores in the United States rose 0.4%, below the average estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Total income and earnings per action were also slightly below expectations. Domino’s actions fell 4.8% in operations prior to market opening in New York.
The results show the difficulties facing restaurants to attract diners who take care of their budget. Domino’s has tried everything, from a modified version of the “buy one and take another” to an association with Netflix.
That has given rise to relative success, with an increase in Domino’s sales in the United States and abroad last year, in contrast to competitors such as Pizza Hut. But the chain reduced its objectives in October due in part to the low consumer expense.
The International Domino’s segment was a prominent point in the fourth quarter, with sales in the same stores increasing faster than expected. That raised the annual growth of the 1.6%segment, in line with the expectations that the chain established at the end of 2024 after dealing with the closures in some markets and the consequences of the boycots derived from the war between Israel and Hamas.
The annual growth of retail sales, which also includes the results of the new branches, reached the objective that the company had set down in October. However, the net growth of the stores was slightly below the objectives of Domino’s, which had also been reduced.
Domino’s shares rose 9.9% in the 12 months until Friday, compared to an increase of more than 20% in the S&P 500 index.
