ST. LOUIS (AP) - Panera Bread Co. shares jumped in extended trading Tuesday after the restaurant chain reported an uptick in sales in recent days.
The company said that revenue from its established company-owned sites rose 4.7 percent for the first 27 days of its current quarter. That's much better than the 2.4 percent increase in that same measure during the second quarter that ended June 30.
It also helped offset concerns about a disappointing second-quarter performance.
Panera also reported Tuesday that it earned $41.9 million, or $1.60 per share, for its second quarter. Earnings, adjusted for non-recurring costs, came to $1.61 per share. That fell short of market forecasts; analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research, on average, were anticipating earnings of $1.63 per share.
Its quarterly revenue increased 7 percent to $676.7 million, but analysts were anticipating $681.4 million.
Panera, based in St. Louis, has been making changes to its food, marketing and store design to increase its competitive edge. It also is working to expand into catering, delivery and other related businesses, but said those cost dampen profits due in quarters ahead due to startup costs.
Panera shares soared 8 percent in extended trading. Its stock closed regular trading at $186.99 Tuesday, up 30 percent in the last 12 months.
Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on PNRA at http://www.zacks.com/ap/PNRA
Keywords: Panera, Earnings Report