Chuck E. Cheese's posts loss in 4th QChuck E. Cheese's posts loss in 4th Q

IRVING Texas CEC Entertainment Inc., parent to the 534-unit Chuck E. Cheese’s pizza and entertainment brand, said that its fourth-quarter results plunged into negative territory on asset impairment charges and tax adjustments.

The company also said on Tuesday that “pressures on consumer disposable income” negatively affected sales, which remained about flat from a year ago, as new store development offset a quarterly same-store sales drop of 2.7 percent.

For the quarter ended Dec. 30, CEC recorded a net loss of $600,000, or a loss of 2 cents per share, compared with net income of $12.1 million, or 36 cents per share, in the same period of 2006. Included in the latest results were an $8.4 million asset-impairment cost and a tax-related adjustments of about $2 million.

Revenues of $175.12 million in the fourth quarter were nearly the same as the $175.06 million in the prior-year quarter.

Net income for 2007 slipped 3.5 percent from a year earlier, to $55.9 million, or $1.76 per share, from $68.3 million, or $2.04 per share, in 2006. Revenues for 2007 increased 1.6 percent to $785.3 million. Same-store sales declined 1.4 percent for the year.

“Given the challenging consumer environment, we remain cautious in our outlook for 2008,” Richard M. Frank, chairman and chief executive, said in a statement.

The company predicted same-store sales growth for the year of flat to up 1 percent. It also said it planned to add six to seven corporate units and four franchised units this year. The company owns and operates 490 locations in the United States and Canada and franchises 44 additional units.