Chipotle shares chill 6% on lower-than-expected earnings

Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill cooled off Thursday after the casual restaurant chain reported an 8.5% increase in first-quarter profit that missed Wall Street expectations.

Chipotle lost $32.79 (6%) to $519.61 in heavy trading volume.

Denver-based Chipotle said net income for the January-March period totaled $83.1 million, or $2.64 per share. That compared with $76.6 million, or $2.45 per share, for the first quarter of 2013. Revenue rose to $904.2 million, a 24.4% increase, year over year, the company said.

Financial analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial Network had forecast $873.8 million in revenue and earnings per share of $2.86.

Chipotle said the revenue was driven by a 13.4% increase in comparable restaurant sales, along with newly opened locations. The company opened 44 new restaurants during the quarter, bringing the total count to 1,637. The company said it expects to open 180-195 new restaurants this year.

Chipotle also announced it would spend up to an additional $100 million buying back common stock from investors. The company has up to $77 million available for repurchases as of March 31 under previously announced plans.

"We are delighted that more and more people are choosing to visit our restaurants every day, allowing us to deliver double-digit comps during the quarter," said Chipotle co-CEO and founder Steve Ells in a statement issued with the earnings results.

Chipotle said later Thursday that it plans to raise prices 3% to 5% per menu item starting in the next few weeks. The price hikes are the company's first in three years.