News

Third quarter comps and revenue flat at Pizza Inn

April 22, 2004

THE COLONY, Texas—Same-store sales at 405-unit Pizza Inn rose 0.9 percent for the company's third quarter, ended March 28, 2004.

According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, net income increased to $617,000 from $376,000 during the comparable quarter last year. Revenues increased to $14.6 million from $14.2 million during the period.

For Pizza Inn's first nine months of fiscal 2004, comp-store sales fell 1.9 percent, and net income was $1.67 million on revenues of $44.8 million, down from $2.57 million on revenues of $44.7 million last year.

According to the filing, Pizza Inn will pay majority shareholder Newcastle Partners $176,000 for costs incurred in a recent proxy solicitation (see Newcastle gains control of Pizza Inn board, Proxy battle underway at Pizza Inn and Battle for the Board at Pizza Inn), in which it gained control of the chain's board.

Pizza Inn also said in the filing it is establishing a Strategic Planning Committee, comprised of independent directors of the company, to undertake an extensive review of all aspects of its operations. In documents filed with the SEC in 2003, Newcastle Partners complained that the chain's leaders had been negligent in not forming a long-term strategic plan.

The planning committee's members include Robert B. Page and Ramon D. Phillips (a Pizza Inn franchisee and its former chief financial officer), both of whom were Newcastle board nominees.