Flynn Group, the franchise operator of restaurant brands from Applebee’s to Wendy’s as well as Planet Fitness gyms, is exploring the sale of a majority stake that could value it at more than $5 billion, sources told Reuters Thursday.
The San Francisco-based Flynn Group, which was founded in 1999 with eight Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar franchises, is working with Bank of America, the sources told Reuters.
Founded in 1999 by real estate investor Greg Flynn, the Flynn Group, the company website noted, operates more then 2,600 restaurants and fitness clubs in the United States and Australia, generating more than $4.5 billion in annual sales.
The company added Wendy’s in Australia to its portfolio in 2023 after initiating a push into the country with Pizza Hut.
Representatives from the Flynn Group, asked to comment in an email Friday, did not respond by press time. The company last fall rebranded as Flynn Group, from Flynn Restaurant Group L.P., after the Planet Fitness acquisition.
Reuters on Thursday noted that sources said the Flynn Group generates more than $450 million in annual earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
Investors in the Flynn Group, including Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (OTPP) and private-equity Main Post Partners, could sell part of their stakes and remain invested following a deal, sources told the news service. Flynn Group's management, who are also significant shareholders, could do the same, the sources added.
OTPP owns about a third of Flynn Group, Main Post owns slightly more than a third, and Flynn management owns the remainder, the sources said.
Flynn was voted as Nation’s Restaurant News Operator of the Year in 2016.
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