Financials

  • A smiling white man in a dark suit with no tie in front of a bar.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Fogo de Chão
    Image attribution tooltip

    Fogo de Chão appoints successor to long-tenured CFO

    Daniel Duran succeeded Tony Laday, who retired after helping the chain through an IPO, a global pandemic and multiple acquisitions over 12 years.

    By • July 24, 2026
  • A zoomed in image of Dutch Bros building signage
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Dutch Bros
    Image attribution tooltip

    Gas price moderation won’t end restaurant consumer woes

    Falling gas prices may not mean a return to consumer health, as wages fall and savings deplete, worsening the gap between restaurant winners and losers.

    By • July 22, 2026
  • Shot of three business persons filling in paperwork in an office. Explore the Trendline➔
    Image attribution tooltip
    Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip
    Trendline

    Restaurant Financing

    With ongoing macroeconomic pressures facing restaurants, operators are entering into alternative financing, mergers and acquisitions and even bankruptcy to sustain their businesses. 

    By Restaurant Dive staff
  • A person in a suit stands on stage surrounded by a large crowd in the stands.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Starbucks
    Image attribution tooltip

    What 10 leading restaurant companies pay their CEOs — and their hourly workers

    Median hourly compensation hovers near, and sometimes below, the poverty line, while leading restaurant CEOs earn tens of millions.

    By • July 22, 2026
  • A diamond sign with red and blue and a white words that say "Domino's"
    Image attribution tooltip
    Joe Raedle via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Domino’s says order counts are up thanks to third-party delivery

    Partnerships with Uber Eats and DoorDash are bringing in more new customers than the chain would have gained otherwise.

    By • July 21, 2026
  • A photograph of a rectanguler sign with a Cracker Barrel logo and its Uncle Herschel mascot
    Image attribution tooltip
    marcnorman via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Cracker Barrel sells Maple Street Biscuit Company

    The chain will close 16 of its subsidiary biscuit brand locations after selling 35 to Biscuit Belly as part of a move to improve profitability. 

    By • July 21, 2026
  • A photogrpah of a building with a brick facade. It has a round sign with blue background and red typeface that says Jersey Mike's Subs
    Image attribution tooltip
    jetcityimage via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Jersey Mike’s IPO could raise over $1B

    The chain could secure the restaurant industry's largest public offering of the past 20 years, far outpricing Krispy Kreme’s $500 million debut in 2021.

    By • Updated July 21, 2026
  • A Hardee's location
    Image attribution tooltip
    gsheldon via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Hardee’s franchisee says old stores, high costs led to bankruptcy

    Superior Star said it absorbed significant, unexpected deferred maintenance expenses following its 2023 acquisition of scores of Hardee’s restaurants. 

    By • July 17, 2026
  • A photograph of a selection of food items, including pepperoni pizza, chicken wings and burgers next to a green checkered back with wording that says Wonder The Cravings Expert.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Wonder
    Image attribution tooltip

    Wonder tops $9B valuation, raises $650M

    The food hall company will use the latest funding round to support its ongoing expansion, marketplace growth and technology investments.

    By • July 16, 2026
  • McDonald's Q1 Earnings Up On Higher Menu Prices, Overseas Growth
    Image attribution tooltip
    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    McDonald’s hires Nike vet as chief strategy officer

    Ugwechi Amadi will help the company bring its NEXT strategy to life and create new opportunities for growth, CFO Ian Borden said.

    By • July 15, 2026
  • A Hardee's location on a sunny day.
    Image attribution tooltip
    RiverNorthPhotography via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    60-store Hardee’s operator files for bankruptcy

    Superior Star, which was formed in 2023, lost 32 units last year due to terminations or closures.

    By • July 10, 2026
  • An exterior image of a Wonder food Hall
    Image attribution tooltip
    Permission granted by Wonder
    Image attribution tooltip

    Wonder plans another $600M funding round

    The food hall company has raised over $2.8 billion since 2021 and could file for an initial public offering as early as next year.

    By • July 10, 2026
  • A photograph of a corner restuarant with Jersey Mike's Subs as signage.
    Image attribution tooltip
    KenWiedemann via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip
    Deep Dive

    Jersey Mike’s IPO reflects growing investor appetite for restaurants

    Investors are anticipating strong valuations from the sandwich chain, especially after Black Rock Coffee’s successful 2025 debut.

    By • Updated July 9, 2026
  • A sign that says "Since 1956 Jersey Miek's Subs"
    Image attribution tooltip
    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Jersey Mike’s rapid growth in 4 charts

    Since 2006, the soon-to-be public fast casual chain has grown systemwide sales at a CAGR of 20%, but that’s far from its only bright spot.

    By • July 7, 2026
  • An image of Jersey Mike's sandwiches cut in half
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Jersey Mike's
    Image attribution tooltip

    Jersey Mike’s files for IPO

    The private equity-backed sandwich chain filed a prospectus with the SEC Thursday, highlighting its strong unit volumes and rapid growth. 

    By • July 2, 2026
  • An exterior shot of a Red Lobster restaurant from downhill, in the foreground, lush shrubbery separates the restaurant from the camera.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Red Lobster
    Image attribution tooltip

    Still steamed: Red Lobster sues Thai Union over 2024 shrimp blunder

    The chain’s creditors claim the former shareholder pushed out a shrimp promotion for its own interests even though it led to significant losses for the full-service brand.

    By • July 1, 2026
  • Papa John's pizza box is seen on July 11, 2018 in Miami, Florida
    Image attribution tooltip
    Joe Raedle via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Papa Johns’ CFO to depart

    Ravi Thanawala helped with major turnaround efforts over the past three years and briefly led the company on an interim basis.

    By • July 1, 2026
  • An image of a red sign with white logo that says "Wendy's." Above the sign is an cartoon image of a girl with red hair and pigtails with blue bows.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Brandon Bell via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Wendy’s hires former Potbelly exec as CFO

    Steve Cirulis, who served alongside Wendy’s CEO Bob Wright at the sandwich chain, joins the troubled fast food brand in the midst of a turnaround.

    By • June 23, 2026
  • An image of a restaurant with a logo that says "on the border mexican grill & cantina."
    Image attribution tooltip
    The image by Dwight Burdette is licensed under CC BY 3.0
    Image attribution tooltip

    On the Border files for Ch. 7 liquidation

    The Tex-Mex chain closed all but five of its stores earlier this month, and has filed for bankruptcy for the second time in two years. 

    By • June 23, 2026
  • A close up photograph of a pink and brown drink.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Starbucks
    Image attribution tooltip

    Starbucks CFO delegates principal accounting role

    The coffee giant’s finance chief Cathy Smith is transferring the PAO role to Val Bauduin, who will continue to report to Smith.

    By Maura Webber Sadovi • June 16, 2026
  • A daytime photograph of a building with a stone facade and a large red sign that says "Red Robin." The parking lot in front of the building is empty.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Brett_Hondow via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Red Robin refranchises 86 units for $72.5M

    Since May, the brand has entered three agreements to offload over 100 restaurants to franchisees as it works to raise capital to pay down debt.

    By • June 16, 2026
  • An image of a Twin Peaks restaurant with wooden exteriors.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Permission granted by Twin Peaks
    Image attribution tooltip

    Twin Peaks franchisees take over management of brand

    Summit Acquisitions, a firm made up of tenured operators, will oversee operations and growth strategy as the brand emerges from bankruptcy.

    By • Updated June 16, 2026
  • Blaze Pizza's new signature pizzas.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Blaze Pizza
    Image attribution tooltip

    Blaze Pizza hires GoTo Foods alum as CFO

    The chain has struggled with a declining store base in recent years, despite menu changes and a loyalty overhaul. 

    By • June 16, 2026
  • pizza hut
    Image attribution tooltip
    Retrieved from Pizza Hut.
    Image attribution tooltip

    Yum Brands sells Pizza Hut for $2.7B

    The company will sell the chain to LongRange Capital and Yum China Holdings in two separate transactions following a review of strategic alternatives.

    By • Updated June 16, 2026
  • An image of a restaurant with a logo that says "on the border mexican grill & cantina."
    Image attribution tooltip
    The image by Dwight Burdette is licensed under CC BY 3.0
    Image attribution tooltip

    On the Border has just 5 restaurants left

    The Tex-Mex chain was left out of casual dining’s revival and closed about 30 of its company-owned restaurants in the last week.

    By • June 15, 2026
  • A Cracker Barrel sign hangs on the outside of a restaurant.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Joe Raedle via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Cracker Barrel reports rising guest metrics, but sales remain on the decline

    The restaurant’s Google star rating is up 4% year over year, but the company has yet to return to sales growth after the fall out from a botched rebrand attempt last year.

    By Bryan Wassel • June 10, 2026