Burger King parent misses revenue expectations amid labor crunch

• Restaurant Brands International posted revenue of $1.5 billion in the quarter, compared to expectations of $1.52 billion

• Restaurants in some regions had to reduce working hours due to labor challenges

Burger King parent Restaurant Brands International posted lower-than-expected quarterly revenue on Monday due to labor challenges.

Restaurant Brands reported total revenue of $1.5 billion in the third-quarter, compared to $1.52 billion as expected by analysts surveyed by Refinitiv.

The company, though, reported adjusted per-share earnings of 76 cents beating expectations of 74 cents.

Shares of the company fell 3% in morning trading.

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Labor Challenges

Restaurant Brands said that due to labor challenges, restaurants in some regions had to reduce working hours or service modes.

CEO Jose Cil said to handle the staffing issues, about 40% of Popeyes locations had to close dining rooms temporarily and only continue takeout and delivery.

Burger King sales

Same-store sales of Burger King, though, rose 7.9% but missed estimates of 8.6% by StreetAccount. 

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Sales of the burger chain in the home market is lagging behind of rivals as the same-store sales in the U.S. fell 1.6%.

Tims Hortons sales

Same-store sales of Tims Hortons, which has been struggling since a long time, rose 8.9% in the quarter, missing StreetAccount estimates of 10.3%.

Slow recovery of Canada from COVID-19 has restricted Tims’ same-store sales growth this year.

However, the executives said that Tims is getting back on its feet as all of its product categories, excluding hot coffee, are back to pre-pandemic levels or higher.

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen sales

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen’s same-store sales fell by 2.4% in the quarter, compared to a rise of 17.4% in the same period last year. The fried chicken chain is facing tough competition as its rivals have also rolled their versions of Popeyes’ famous chicken sandwich.

Picture Credits: Getty Images