Texas Roadhouse, Inc. announced financial results for the 13-week period ended March 29.
Results for the first quarter included the following highlights:
- Comparable restaurant sales growth of 4.6 percent at company restaurants and 3.1 percent at franchise restaurants.
- Restaurant margin, as a percentage of restaurant sales, increased 116 basis points to 20.1 percent, primarily driven by lower food costs.
- Diluted earnings per share increased 9.8 percent to $0.50 from $0.46 in the prior year.
- The company recorded a pre-tax charge of $5.5 million ($3.4 million after-tax) related to a pending legal settlement which had a $0.05 impact on diluted earnings per share and a 10 percent impact on diluted earnings per share growth.
- Seven company-owned restaurants were opened, including two Bubba’s 33 restaurants; and, the company repurchased 114,700 shares of its common stock for $4.1 million.
Kent Taylor, Chief Executive Officer of Texas Roadhouse, Inc., comments, "We are pleased that our top-line momentum continued in the first quarter, driven by solid traffic growth. Strong comp sales, along with commodity deflation driven by lower beef costs helped us deliver near double digit earnings growth this quarter. As of today, we have opened ten company restaurants, as well as two international franchise openings, including our first in the Philippines. Beyond restaurant development, our balance sheet and cash flow remain healthy and we believe we are well-positioned for long-term growth."
The company reported that comparable restaurant sales growth at company restaurants for the first four weeks of its second quarter of fiscal 2016 was approximately 5.1 percent compared to the prior year period.
Management reiterated the following expectations for 2016:
- Positive comparable restaurant sales growth.
- Approximately 30 company restaurant openings, including approximately seven Bubba’s 33 restaurants.
- One to 2 percent food cost deflation.
- An income tax rate of approximately 30 percent and total capital expenditures of $165 to $175 million.
