O’Charley’s Inc., reported a profit for the first time in six quarters on Tuesday as comparable store sales and guest counts rose in the first quarter of 2011 at all three of the company’s restaurant concepts.
The Nashville, Tenn.-based company — which operates the flagship brand O’Charley’s, Ninety Nine Restaurants and Stoney River Legendary Steaks — generated net income for the quarter ended April 17 of $1.8 million, or $0.08 per share, compared with a net loss of $4.3 million, or $0.21 per share, in the same period last year.
Revenue for the quarter dipped 0.8 percent to $265 million from $267.1 million in the first quarter of 2010, as a 1.5-percent increase in blended comparable restaurant sales was offset by a 2.2-percent decrease in restaurant sales resulting from restaurant closures in 2010.
The Nashville, Tenn.-based, 343-unit company shuttered 16 underperforming restaurants across the country, including 11 O’Charley’s locations and five Ninety Nine Restaurants outlets.
Individual concept results included:
• O’Charley’s comparable sales and guest counts for company-operated restaurants increased by 0.4 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively.
• Ninety Nine Restaurants’ comparable sales and guest counts rose 3.1 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively.
• Stoney River Legendary Steaks’ comparable sales and guest counts jumped by 8.4 percent and 13.9 percent, respectively.
The calendar shift of Easter into the second quarter of 2011 positively impacted first quarter restaurant sales by 0.4 percent, the company said.
“During the first quarter, we saw comparable sales increase at the O’Charley’s concept for the first time in five years,” David Head, O’Charley’s, Inc. president and chief executive, said in a statement. “Our Ninety Nine and Stoney River concepts each had their third consecutive quarter of comparable sales improvement. Stoney River also had their sixth consecutive quarter of guest count increases.
“While we are encouraged by the improvement in comparable sales and our improvements in our guest satisfaction metrics, we recognize that this is but the first step in strengthening guest loyalty in all three of our concepts,” Head continued.
“We are focused on translating this progress into long-term sustainable growth in sales and profitability.”
For the second quarter of 2011, O’Charley’s is forecasting total revenue of between $190 million and $195 million. O’Charley’s second quarter is a 12-week quarter, compared with the first, which was a 16-week quarter.
O’Charley’s operates or franchises 227 of its flagship brand in 18 states, 106 Ninety Nine locations and 10 Stoney River restaurants.
Contact Alan Snel at [email protected].
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