在這篇文章中:
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Revenue: $325.7 million, a 2.2% increase from last year.
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Comparable Restaurant Sales: Increased by 1.7%.
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Traffic Growth: 1.3%, best traffic quarter since 2018 (excluding COVID-recovery quarters).
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Restaurant-Level Cash Flow Margin: 11.7%, 20 basis points less than a year ago.
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Restaurant-Level Operating Profit: $38 million, $200,000 higher than last year.
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Adjusted EBITDA: $18.5 million, 5.7% of sales, $1.1 million lower than last year.
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Net Loss: $2.9 million, with a diluted net loss per share of $0.13.
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Cost of Sales: 26.6%, 70 basis points unfavorable compared to last year.
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Labor and Benefits Expenses: 37.1% of sales, consistent with last year.
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Occupancy and Operating Expenses: 24.7% of sales, 40 basis points favorable compared to last year.
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Share Repurchase: Approximately 268,000 shares repurchased at a cost of $8.2 million.
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Net Debt: $48.1 million, $800,000 higher than the end of Q2.
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Fourth Quarter Comparable Restaurant Sales: Up more than 4% for the first four weeks.
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Expected Q4 Restaurant Level Margins: Mid- to high-14% range.
Release Date: October 31, 2024
For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.
Positive Points
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BJ's Restaurants Inc (NASDAQ:BJRI) generated positive traffic in the third quarter, outpacing the Black Box competitive set.
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The company has a strong brand presence, serving over a million guests weekly with annual sales exceeding $1.3 billion.
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BJ's Restaurants Inc (NASDAQ:BJRI) has a dedicated team of 220,000 members contributing to its success.
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The Pizookie Meal Deal promotion has been successful in driving traffic and maintaining strong margins.
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The company is implementing a structured and disciplined approach to financial policies, focusing on value-creating investments.
Negative Points
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BJ's Restaurants Inc (NASDAQ:BJRI) did not achieve the expected flow-through of incremental sales gains to earnings in the third quarter.
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The Pizookie Pass promotion, while popular, resulted in check compression and downstream P&L pressure.
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Higher than anticipated restaurant costs impacted the restaurant-level cash flow margin, which was lower than a year ago.
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The company faces challenges in consistently achieving hurdle rate returns on new restaurant investments.
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BJ's Restaurants Inc (NASDAQ:BJRI) has lower brand awareness outside of California, impacting its market penetration strategy.
Q & A Highlights
Q: Can you explain the margin underperformance in the third quarter and what changes are expected in the fourth quarter to improve margins? A: Thomas Houdek, CFO, explained that the third-quarter margin underperformance was due to a higher mix of promotional activity, increased supply chain costs, and inefficient labor leverage. For the fourth quarter, improvements are expected from better food costs, adjusted promotional mix, and refined labor models.