Domino's Pizza published its third-quarter 2026 results on Tuesday, October 13, before the market opened. The quarter ended on September 6. Diluted earnings per share were $4.60, up 12.7% from $4.08 in the year-ago quarter, and revenue rose 3.4% to $1,185.6 million. U.S. same-store sales rose 0.3%, against 5.2% a year earlier, and outside the U.S. they rose 0.2% excluding currency effects.
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What Was Reported
| Q3 2026 | Q3 2025 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 1,185.6 | 1,147.1 | +3.4% |
| Global retail sales | 4,840.4 | 4,696.2 | +3.2% excl. currency |
| U.S. same-store sales | +0.3% | +5.2% | |
| International same-store sales, excl. currency | +0.2% | +1.7% | |
| Operating income | 241.8 | 223.2 | +8.3% |
| Operating margin | 20.4% | 19.5% | +0.9 pts |
| Supply chain gross margin | 12.2% | 11.3% | +0.9 pts |
| Net income | 152.2 | 139.3 | +9.2% |
| Diluted EPS (dollars) | 4.60 | 4.08 | +12.7% |
In millions of dollars, except per-share figures and ratios. Source: Domino's Pizza results release (Exhibit 99.1 to Form 8-K), October 13, 2026.
Same-Store Sales and Stores
U.S. same-store sales rose 0.3%, against 5.2% in the year-ago quarter. At company-owned stores they rose 1.0%, and at franchise stores 0.3%. Outside the U.S., excluding currency effects, they rose 0.2%, against 1.7% a year earlier.
Global retail sales reached $4,840.4 million, against $4,696.2 million, an increase of 3.2% excluding currency effects and 3.1% in dollars. In the U.S. they rose 2.1%, to $2,368.6 million, and outside it 4.3% excluding currency effects, to $2,471.8 million. Retail sales also include stores that opened, so the gap between them and same-store sales comes from new stores.
The company added 175 net stores in the quarter, 26 in the U.S. and 149 outside it, and the system stood at 22,706 stores: 7,257 in the U.S. and 15,449 outside it. Over the last four quarters, 956 net stores were added.
Revenue, Margins and Profit
Revenue rose 3.4% to $1,185.6 million. The supply chain added $49.2 million, more than the entire $38.5 million increase in revenue: its revenue rose 7.1% to $746.2 million, from $697.0 million. Royalties and fees in the U.S. rose about 5%, to $165.6 million from $157.2 million, and in the international business 6.6%, to $83.7 million from $78.5 million. On the other side, U.S. franchise advertising revenue fell 2.2%, to $128.7 million, and U.S. company-owned store revenue fell 25.8%, to $61.4 million, a decline the release attributes to the move of stores to franchisees in the second quarter of 2026.
The supply chain gross margin rose to 12.2% from 11.3%, an increase of 0.9 percentage points, which the release credits to procurement productivity. The operating margin rose to 20.4% from 19.5%, the overall gross margin barely changed (40.2% against 40.1%), and the net margin rose to 12.8% from 12.1%.
Operating income rose 8.3%, to $241.8 million from $223.2 million, and net income rose 9.2%, to $152.2 million from $139.3 million. Net interest expense rose to $44.2 million from $41.0 million, and the tax rate, calculated from the figures in the release, fell to 22.0% from 22.3%. Earnings per share grew 12.7%, faster than net income, because the average diluted share count fell 3.0%, to 33.11 million from 34.15 million. The release shows no adjusted earnings per share, and $4.60 is the only GAAP figure.
Cash Flow, One-Offs and Capital Returns
The release presents cash flow only for the first three quarters of the year, not for the quarter. Operating cash flow fell 5.7%, to $520.6 million, from $552.3 million. Capital expenditure was $60.8 million, against $56.7 million, and free cash flow fell 7.2%, to $459.8 million from $495.6 million. The company attributes the decline to the timing of advertising payments and to working capital. Over the same period revenue rose 3.7%, to $3,530.6 million, operating income 7.0%, to $704.2 million, and earnings per share 4.7%, to $12.80 from $12.22.
In the quarter itself the release shows no significant exceptional item: there was a loss of $0.206 million on moving stores to franchisees, negligible against operating income. It contains no exceptional reserve, legal, restructuring or tax items. In the first three quarters the company recorded a gain of $7.78 million on the sale of assets, its corporate aircraft, in the first quarter of 2026, and a gain of $3.881 million on moving stores to franchisees. Other expense over the same period was $20.9 million, against income of $5.0 million a year earlier, and the cash flow statement shows it as investment losses. Separately, the investment in DPC Dash on the balance sheet stood at $15.2 million, against $36.1 million at the end of December 2025.
In the quarter the company repurchased 216,282 shares for $73.6 million, and since the start of the year 848,503 shares for $304.9 million. Authorization of $1.15 billion remains. A dividend of $1.99 per share, declared on October 6, will be paid on December 30, 2026, to shareholders of record on December 15. The leverage ratio fell to 4.2 from 4.5. On the balance sheet, the current portion of long-term debt stood at $1,326.8 million, against $6.1 million at the end of December 2025. The figures I have do not say which notes it refers to, so I present it without interpretation.
Guidance: Not in the Release, but on the Call
The release itself contains no guidance. What is known about the outlook for the year comes from earnings-call transcripts published by third-party sites, not from a company document.
| Outlook on the July 20 call | Outlook on the October 13 call | |
|---|---|---|
| International same-store sales | Up low single digits | About flat |
| U.S. net stores | About 175 | 125-150 |
| International net stores | About 800 | About 800 |
| Global retail sales growth | Mid single digits | Low to mid single digits, toward the midpoint |
| Operating income growth | Mid to high single digits | Mid single digits |
Sources: the Motley Fool transcript of the October 13 call, for remarks by CFO Sandeep Reddy, and the MarketBeat transcript of the July 20 call. The outlook excludes the 53rd week. The operating income outlook excludes currency effects, gains from moving stores to franchisees, and the gain on the sale of the aircraft. The U.S. same-store sales outlook is up low single digits, now toward the low end of the range.
In the table, four of the five items are lower than those given in July, and one is unchanged. According to the summary of the call, the pressure on store development in the U.S. stems from franchisee profitability. CEO Joe Jordan said on the call, per the transcript, that the macro environment will remain a weight on the consumer through the end of the year.
In the release itself Jordan wrote: "I believe our next chapter will be our strongest yet." He set three priorities: getting closer to customers, helping franchisee profitability, and executing faster, in order to gain share.
Versus Expectations, and the Stock
According to the AP earnings snapshot published on Yahoo Finance, with the consensus attributed to Zacks Investment Research, analysts expected earnings of $4.33 per share and revenue of $1.17 billion. Reported earnings were $0.27 higher, or 6.2%, and revenue, $1.19 billion, was slightly above expectations. Other sources show a slightly different consensus, so the figures here are from AP only.
The stock closed on the report day at $296.10, down 4.76%, from $310.90 on the previous trading day.
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דעה אישית של אילן אברמוב - לא ייעוץ ולא המלצה
The gap that caught my attention in this report: earnings per share rose 12.7% and beat expectations by 6.2%, and the stock closed down 4.76%. When you look at where the profit came from, the answer is not demand, because same-store sales barely moved. The growth in earnings came from a supply chain margin, from new stores, and from a 3.0% drop in the share count.
There are two ways to read this. The first: the franchise model is doing what it was built to do. Royalties rose, the supply chain earned more, and 956 net stores were added over the last four quarters, without same-store sales having to carry the growth. The second: same-store sales are the system's thermometer, and when they are flat the improvement rests on factors that are limited in size. A supply chain margin cannot rise forever, and the buyback, $304.9 million since the start of the year, is happening while free cash flow for the three quarters fell 7.2%. The two readings rest on the same numbers.
What I will watch: whether U.S. same-store sales return to growth, and how the pace of U.S. store openings looks, with a target that, per the transcript, fell to 125 to 150 from about 175. That is where it will become clear whether franchisee profitability, which Jordan set as a priority, supports development or holds it back.
(To be clear: this is my personal opinion only. Nothing here is a recommendation to take any action, and there is no forecast here of the price of any security.)
Ilan Abramov, the author, or anyone on his behalf may hold some of the securities or funds mentioned in this article.
