Applebee's International Reports December Comparable Sales; Updates 2006 Earnings Guidance and Reaffirms 2007 Outlook.OVERLAND PARK Overland Park, city (1990 pop. 111,790), Johnson co., NE Kans., a residential suburb of Kansas City; inc. 1960. There is printing and publishing, and the manufacture of apparel, aircraft parts, cement, prepared foods, salt, chemicals, marine accessories, and signs. , Kan. -- Applebee's International, Inc. (Nasdaq: APPB APPB Array Processor with Pipelined Bus APPB Application Builder ) today reported comparable sales for the six-week period ended December 31, 2006. System-wide domestic comparable sales increased 0.2 percent for the December period, and comparable sales for domestic franchise restaurants increased 0.4 percent. Comparable sales for company restaurants decreased 0.4 percent, reflecting a decrease in guest traffic of between 1.0 and 1.5 percent, combined with a higher average check. The company estimates that the timing of both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day had a positive impact on December sales of approximately 1 percent. System-wide domestic comparable sales for the fourth quarter of 2006 (14 weeks) decreased 1.1 percent, with domestic franchise restaurant comparable sales down 1.0 percent and company restaurant comparable sales down 1.4 percent. System-wide domestic comparable sales for the 2006 fiscal year decreased 0.6 percent, with domestic franchise restaurant comparable sales down 0.5 percent and company comparable restaurant sales down 1.0 percent. System-wide comparable sales for the fourth quarter were at the high end of the company's expectations. The company now expects diluted earnings per share diluted earnings per share An earnings measure calculated by dividing net income less preferred stock dividends for a period by the average number of shares of common stock that would be outstanding if all convertible securities were converted into shares of for fiscal year 2006 to be at or slightly above the high end of its previously stated guidance of $1.10 to $1.13, excluding impairment Impairment 1. A reduction in a company's stated capital. 2. The total capital that is less than the par value of the company's capital stock. Notes: 1. This is usually reduced because of poorly estimated losses or gains. 2. charges. The impact of the 53rd week in fiscal year 2006 is expected to be approximately $0.05 per diluted di·lute tr.v. di·lut·ed, di·lut·ing, di·lutes 1. To make thinner or less concentrated by adding a liquid such as water. 2. To lessen the force, strength, purity, or brilliance of, especially by admixture. share. The company also reaffirmed its previously stated guidance for fiscal year 2007, including diluted earnings per share in the range of $1.15 to $1.20. In December 2006, the company entered into a new five-year $400 million revolving credit Revolving Credit A line of credit where the customer pays a commitment fee and is then allowed to use the funds when they are needed. It is usually used for operating purposes, fluctuating each month depending on the customers current cash flow needs. facility, which replaced its prior $250 million facility. As of December 31, 2006, the company had $214 million available under its revolving credit facility. The company repurchased 474,600 shares of common stock in the fourth quarter at an average price of $23.16 for an aggregate cost of $11.0 million. During fiscal year 2006, the company repurchased 1,760,500 shares of common stock at an average price of $21.88 for an aggregate cost of $38.5 million. As of December 31, 2006, $240.4 million remains available under the company's current stock repurchase Stock repurchase A firm's repurchase of outstanding shares of its common stock. authorization The right or permission to use a system resource; the process of granting access. See access control. . The company will release complete fourth quarter and fiscal year 2006 results after the market closes on February 14, 2007, and a conference call will be held on Thursday morning, February 15, 2007, at 10:00 a.m. Central Time (11:00 a.m. Eastern Time). The conference call will be broadcast live over the Internet and a replay will be available shortly after the call on the Investors section of the company's website (www.applebees.com). Applebee's International, Inc., headquartered in Overland Park, Kan., develops, franchises and operates restaurants under the Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar brand, the largest casual dining concept in the world. As of December 31, 2006, there were 1,930 Applebee's restaurants operating system-wide in 49 states and 17 international countries. Additional information on Applebee's International can be found at the company's website (www.applebees.com). Certain statements contained in this release, including fiscal year 2006 and 2007 guidance, are forward-looking and based on current expectations. There are several risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described, including but not limited to the ability of the company and its franchisees to open and operate additional restaurants profitably, the ability of its franchisees to obtain financing, the continued growth of its franchisees, and its ability to attract and retain qualified franchisees, the impact of intense competition in the casual dining segment of the restaurant industry, and its ability to control restaurant operating costs operating costs npl → gastos mpl operacionales which are impacted by market changes, minimum wage and other employment laws, food costs and inflation. For additional discussion of the principal factors that could cause actual results to be materially different, the reader is referred to the company's Form 10-K Form 10-K A report required by the SEC from exchange-listed companies that provides for annual disclosure of certain financial information. Form 10-K See 10-K. for the fiscal year ended December 25, 2005. The company disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements forward-looking statement A projected financial statement based on management expectations. A forward-looking statement involves risks with regard to the accuracy of assumptions underlying the projections. . |
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