The Collins Foods Ltd (ASX: CKF) share price has been a strong performer again on Friday.
At one stage today, the quick service restaurant operator's shares were up over 2% to a record high of $11.32.
When the Collins Foods share price hit that level, it was up over 18% since the start of 2021.
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Why is the Collins Foods share price at a record high?
Investors have been fighting to get hold of Collins Foods shares thanks to its strong performance during the pandemic.
This was evident in December when the company released its half year results and revealed strong sales and profit growth.
For the six months ended 31 December, Collins Foods reported an 11.3% increase in revenue to $499.6 million. Management revealed that this was driven largely by strong growth from its KFC Australia operations. This offset weakness in Europe caused by COVID-19 restrictions
In respect to earnings, Collins Foods reported earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $63.7 million and an underlying net profit after tax of $27.5 million. This represents growth of 10.5% and 15.1%, respectively, over the same period last year.
And while no guidance was given for the remainder of FY 2021, management spoke positively about its growth opportunities and store expansion plans.
Collins Foods' CEO, Drew O'Malley, commented: "We see growth opportunities across each of our business units, and we are focused on strengthening the operational foundations and ramping up our new restaurant pipelines to deliver on these opportunities."
Can Collins Foods' shares go higher?
Also giving the Collins Foods share price a boost in recent months were a number of bullish broker notes.
UBS and Wilsons were among the most bullish brokers. Their analysts have buy and overweight ratings with $11.65 and $11.62 price targets, respectively.
However, with the Collins Food share price now approaching these price targets, the near term upside could be limited.
