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Largest Pizza Hut franchisee disenchanted with Q3 2009 numbers
November 16, 2009
NPC International, the largest Pizza Hut franchisee, has released limited third quarter 2009 earnings. Company leaders are displeased with slacking same-store sales numbers, putting the onus on the parent company to better communicate with their audience.
Comparable store sales from continuing operations declined 12.9 percent from last year's third quarter. NPC's CEO Jim Schwartz attributed this to Pizza Hut's struggle to find the proper message to connect with the consumer in this new recessionary environment.
Third quarter income from continuing operations of $1.3 million was $0.9 million, or 225 percent greater, than the $0.4 million recorded last year. Year-to-date income from continuing operations of $10.7 million was $6.4 million, or 149 percent greater, than the $4.3 million recorded last year.
"We are clearly not performing on par with our two primary national competitors in the pizza segment," Schwartz said in a company statement. "We believe that there are likely several factors that are contributing to our divergent results relative to our competition. We believe that value and consumer reaction to our brand positioning are chief among the issues we face as we determine the best go-forward strategy for this great brand in this new consumer paradigm.
"As the largest franchisee of Pizza Hut, we remain actively engaged with the Pizza Hut leadership team to determine how we best proceed in this new consumer environment. In addition, we are also actively working internally to evaluate alternative tactics and strategies in our local markets."
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