(Reuters) -UK's Domino's Pizza Group said on Wednesday its orders increased in the current quarter on the back of higher delivery orders and discounted pricing, after reporting a like-for-like sales growth for the third quarter.
The franchise, which operates under the umbrella of U.S.-based Domino's Pizza in the UK and Ireland, said total orders climbed 5.8% in the first five weeks of the fourth quarter.
Dominos' like-for-like sales grew 0.7% in the third quarter ended Sept. 29, following a decline of 0.5% in the previous quarter.
"We're focused on growing our like-for-like sales in a sustainable way, primarily driven by order growth and not pricing, meaning lower ticket prices for customers and sustainable like-for-like sales growth driven by volume," CEO Andrew Rennie said.
Domino's said it expects full-year core earnings in the range of current market expectations of 142.4 million pounds to 144.7 million pounds ($183.3-$186.3 million).
Total system sales - a term used in the franchising industry to represent sales of all outlets that use a brand - rose to 374.8 million pounds in the third quarter, from 363.7 million pounds a year earlier.
The company operates more than 1,300 stores in the UK and Ireland.
($1 = 0.7769 pounds)
