Express Catering just had its best quarter ever! Should you consider buying this stock?

Let’s talk about Express’s recent results.

Quick back story for those who might not be familiar with Express and what they do. 

The company has been the main food and beverage partner at Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay since 2011. They run all of the food spots after you clear security at Sangster. 

So, Cinnabon, Auntie Anne’s, DQ Grill and Chill, and Tastee’s, Express operates all of them.

The company made US$6 million in revenue for its third quarter which ended in February! That’s almost J$1 billion! In three months! The company recorded net profits of US$1.1 million or roughly J$168 million.

So I know your next question is going to be… how did they do it?

Well, considering that their third quarter included the December travel season, the company said a bump in passenger arrivals helped boost their numbers. The Ministry of Tourism had previously said they expect Jamaica to be back to pre-pandemic levels of arrivals before the original timeline.

In its Q3 report, the Express said about 640 thousand passengers passed through Sangster Airport, and each passenger spent an average of $9.44.

But the real money maker is coming from Express’s expansion efforts. So remember I said earlier that the company has exclusive rights after you go through security at Sangster. Well, they’ve started expanding their footprint in the airport to include the area before you clear security. 

CEO of Express, Ian Dear was on Taking Stock a few months ago and he told us that the company was testing three of its franchises in the general public areas of Sangsters – Cinnabon, Aunt Anne’s and Spice Kitchen. So now anybody can just pull up in their car and buy Cinnabon or Auntie Anne’s.

Plus they just finished out their new court focal point called the Guitar Bar, which the company says has been getting rave reviews.

With all this good news, I wonder if Express will consider moving up the timeline to bring Cinnabon and Auntie Anne’s to Kingston.

Ian told us on Taking Stock that the company plans to into Kingston by 2024 to help diversify the company’s revenues. With the way their operation is set up right now they rely heavily on tourism but branching out into other areas could be really good for business.

So, what do you guys think ECL’s performance? Is it a stock that you’d be interested in?