12:41 PM EST, 01/29/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Shares of Brinker International ( EAT ) soared intraday Wednesday after the casual dining restaurant operator boosted its fiscal 2025 guidance after reporting stronger-than-expected second-quarter results.

The parent of Chili's Grill & Bar ( EAT ) and Maggiano's Little Italy ( EAT ) now expects revenue to range between $5.15 billion and $5.25 billion, up from the $4.7 billion to $4.75 billion range it provided in October. Analysts surveyed by FactSet are modeling for revenue of $4.9 billion in the ongoing year.

Brinker's ( EAT ) adjusted earnings per share forecast was lifted to between $7.50 and $8 from a prior $5.20 to $5.50, well ahead of the $6.44 market expectation. The company's shares jumped about 14% in Wednesday midday trade.

For the three months ended Dec. 25, revenue jumped to $1.36 billion from $1.07 billion the year earlier and was roughly 9% above the FactSet consensus. Adjusted EPS advanced to $2.80 from $0.99 and was 51% above the Street's $1.86 view.

"Chili's ( EAT ) delivered another positive quarter in our turnaround and significantly outperformed the industry," Chief Executive Kevin Hochman told analysts on a conference call, according to a FactSet transcript. "We're pleased with our sustained momentum, the strength of the operational muscle we built, and our significantly improved Chili's ( EAT ) guest experience."

Consolidated comparable sales climbed 27.4% in the quarter, led by a 31.4% gain at Chili's ( EAT ) while Maggiano's sales were up 1.8%. Traffic improved nearly 20% at Chili's ( EAT ).

During the Q&A session on the call, Evercore ISI Senior Managing Director David Palmer described Brinker's ( EAT ) turnaround as probably "the best one of all time in the space."

Brinker ( EAT ) is continuing to work on driving efficiency, Hochman told analysts. Among those efforts are new kitchen display systems, the elimination of chicken portioning and a plan to convert the rest of the restaurant fleet to TurboChef ovens, which "rapidly accelerate cooking," he said.

Price: 176.82, Change: +22.21, Percent Change: +14.36