Popeyes system posts 3.1% dip in same-store sales in 4th Q

Nation's Restaurant News, Feb 5, 2007

Atlanta -- AFC Enterprises Inc., franchisor of 1,822 Popeyes Chicken & Biscuits restaurants and operator of an additional 56 units, reported a 3.1-percent same-store sales decrease at domestic units for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, versus the same quarter a year earlier. Popeyes' domestic systemwide same-store sales increased 1.6 percent for the full fiscal year 2006, the company also reported.

For the current fiscal year 2007, AFC said it expects same-store sales to be up between 1.5 percent and 2.5 percent. In the first quarter, same-store sales are expected to be negative but then improve throughout the year, the company added. AFC expects new restaurant openings to total between 165 and 175 locations, up from 142 openings in 2006, and projects total restaurant closures between 70 and 80 units this year, down from the 94 restaurant closures in 2006.