Beef costs eat into Wendy’s profit Updated: November 6, 2014 10:05AM NEW YORK — Wendy’s says higher beef costs are eating into its profit. The chain known for its square hamburger patties on Thursday reported a lower-than-expect profit for its third quarter, noting that beef costs were “much higher than our initial projections.” It also said it expects the “record high” costs to continue. A day earlier, Burger King’s biggest U.S. franchisees, Carrols Restaurant Group, said its beef cost rose 32 percent from a year earlier. McDonald’s and Chipotle have also said they faced higher beef prices in the quarter and that they expect the pressure to continue. It’s not just beef costs that are pressuring Wendy’s profit margins. The company, which has more than 6,500 locations, is redesigning its restaurants as part of a push to recast itself as a more premium fast-food chain akin to Panera. Restaurant closings during the renovations hurt overall sales and profitability. But Wendy’s has stressed the new designs ultimately help boost sales. For the quarter, The Wendy’s Co. said sales rose 2 percent at company-owned locations, and 0.5 percent at franchise-owned locations. It attributed the difference to the higher number of company-owned restaurants that have the new look. The [...] ilinnews/beef-costs-eat-into-wendys-profit/
Posted on: Fri, 07 Nov 2014 01:00:18 +0000
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