Restaurant Brands reports 2.5% same-store sales growth, fueled by Burger King and Popeyes

Restaurant Brands International on Wednesday reported same-store sales growth of 2.5%, fueled by the better-than-expected performance from Burger King’s and Popeyes’ restaurants.

Shares of the company rose roughly 3% in premarket trading.

Here’s what the company reported:

• Earnings per share: 81 cents adjusted. That may not compare with the 79 cents expected by LSEG.
• Revenue: $2.3 billion. That may not compare with the $2.27 billion expected by LSEG.

The restaurant company reported fourth-quarter net income of $361 million, or 79 cents per share, down from $726 million, or $1.60 per share, a year earlier.

Excluding corporate restructuring fees and other items, Restaurant Brands earned 81 cents per share.

Net sales climbed 26% to $2.3 billion, fueled largely by its acquisitions of its largest U.S. Burger King franchisee and Popeyes China, both which occurred last year.

Still, the company saw better-than-expected sales across all of its segments during the quarter.

Burger King reported U.S. same-store sales growth of 1.5%, beating StreetAccount estimates of 0.8%. The burger chain has been in turnaround mode for more than a year.

Popeyes’ U.S. same-store sales ticked up 0.1%, reversing last quarter’s declines.

And Tim Hortons reported domestic same-store sales growth of 2.5%. The Canadian coffee chain accounts for more than 40% of Restaurant Brands’ quarterly revenue.

Restaurant Brands’ international restaurants saw same-store sales growth of 4.7%, beating StreetAccount estimates of 2.7%. The company credited its Burger King and Popeyes locations for fueling higher sales.

The company also increased its footprint by 3.4%, adding 1,055 new restaurants from the same period a year ago.

Looking to 2025, Restaurant Brands plans to spend between $400 million and $450 million on consolidated capital expenditures, tenant inducements and other incentives.