UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, DC 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of report (Date of earliest event reported): July 10, 2008
DineEquity, Inc.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)
Delaware |
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001-15283 |
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95-3038279 |
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation) |
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(Commission File Number) |
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(IRS Employer Identification No.) |
450 North Brand, Glendale, California |
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91203 |
(Address of Principal Executive Offices) |
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(Zip Code) |
(818) 240-6055
(Registrants telephone number, including area code)
IHOP Corp.
(Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the Registrant under any of the following provisions:
o Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)
o Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)
o Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))
o Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))
ITEM 8.01 OTHER EVENTS
On July 10, 2008, the Registrant issued a press release announcing its second quarter and first six months of fiscal 2008 same-store sales for its IHOP and Applebees business units.
A copy of the press release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 and incorporated herein by reference.
ITEM 9.01. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND EXHIBITS.
(d) Exhibits.
Exhibit No. |
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Description |
99.1 |
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Press release of Registrant, dated July 10, 2008 |
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SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
Date: July 11, 2008 |
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DINEEQUITY, INC. |
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By: |
/s/ Thomas G. Conforti |
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Name: Thomas G. Conforti |
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Title: Chief Financial Officer |
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EXHIBIT INDEX
Exhibit No. |
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Description |
99.1 |
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Press release of Registrant, dated July 10, 2008 |
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Exhibit 99.1
News Release
Stacy Roughan
Director, Investor Relations
DineEquity, Inc.
818-637-3632
DineEquity, Inc. Reports Second Quarter 2008 Same-Store Sales
Results for Its IHOP and Applebees Businesses
Julia A. Stewart, DineEquitys chairman and chief executive officer, said, We are pleased to report IHOPs 22nd consecutive quarter of same-store sales growth as we continue our year-long celebration of IHOPs 50th birthday. IHOPs growth was supported primarily by unique limited-time offers such as Tour de French Toast and Discover America Pancakes. Additionally, during the second quarter 2008, we introduced new advertising to support IHOPs non-breakfast offerings, and teamed up with Minor League BaseballTM for a cross-country promotional road tour.
While we are on track with our plans to re-energize the Applebees brand, we experienced a challenging second quarter 2008. We are still in the early stages of implementing brand and operational improvements, which we believe will ultimately lead to longer-term, sustainable same-store sales growth within the Applebees system. We have built a solid foundation with our recently completed brand positioning and customer targeting projects. We have rolled out a new advertising campaign built around the theme Its a Whole New Neighborhood. We are establishing a pipeline of new and appealing, value-oriented offerings based on our guests favorite items, and will begin to promote these promising performers in the second half of the year. Applebees second quarter 2008 same-store sales results reflected traffic declines at company-operated restaurants, which offset an increased average guest check that was primarily driven by an effective pricing increase of nearly 3%, favorable mix-shift, and the benefit of sales contests employed at company-operated restaurants, Stewart said.
Same-store-sales for Applebees domestic franchised restaurants decreased 1.8% for the second quarter 2008 and decreased 0.9% for the first six months of fiscal 2008. Same-store-
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DineEquity, Inc. |
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450 North Brand Blvd., 7th floor |
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Glendale, California 91203-4415 |
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866.955.DINE |
sales for Applebees Company-operated restaurants decreased 1.5% for the second quarter 2008 and increased 0.3% for the first six months of fiscal 2008. As of June 30, 2008, there were 1,993 Applebees restaurants operating system-wide in 49 states, 17 international countries, and one U.S. territory, of which 509 were company-owned.
DineEquity reiterated its expectations of producing system-wide same-store sales growth at IHOP in the range of 2% to 4% for fiscal 2008. The Company revised its system-wide domestic same-store sales growth expectations for Applebees to range between negative 1% and positive 1% for fiscal 2008 versus its previous growth expectations in the range of 1% to 2% for fiscal 2008.
Stewart said, Our revised same-store sales outlook for Applebees takes into consideration the early stage implementation of our brand re-energizing and operational improvement strategies and our same-store sales performance in the first half of 2008. Our outlook also reflects conservative performance expectations for Applebees value-oriented strategies that we expect to employ in the second half of the year.
DineEquity will release full second quarter 2008 financial results Tuesday, July 29, 2008 before the market opens, and will host an investor conference call to discuss its second quarter 2008 financial results on the same day at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time (8:00 a.m. Pacific Time). To participate on the call, please dial (888) 680-0869 and reference pass code 35984516.
About DineEquity, Inc.
Based in Glendale, California, DineEquity, Inc. franchises and operates restaurants under the Applebees Neighborhood Grill & Bar and IHOP brands. With more than 3,300 restaurants combined, DineEquity is the largest full-service restaurant company in the world. For more information on DineEquity, visit the Companys Web site located at www.dineequity.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
There are forward-looking statements contained in this news release. They use such words as may, will, expect, believe, plan, or other similar terminology, and include statements regarding the strategic and financial benefits of the acquisition of Applebees International, Inc., expectations regarding integration and cost savings, and other financial guidance. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results to be materially different than those expressed or implied in such statements. These factors include, but are not limited to: the implementation of the Companys strategic growth plan; the availability of suitable locations and terms for the sites designated for development; the ability of franchise developers to fulfill their commitments to build new restaurants in the numbers and time frames covered by their development agreements; legislation and government regulation including the ability to obtain satisfactory regulatory approvals; risks associated with executing the Companys strategic plan for Applebees; risks associated with the Companys incurrence of significant indebtedness to finance the acquisition of Applebees; the failure to realize the synergies and other perceived advantages resulting from the acquisition; costs and potential litigation associated with the acquisition; the ability to retain key personnel after the acquisition; conditions beyond the Companys control such as weather, natural disasters, disease outbreaks, epidemics or pandemics impacting the Companys customers or food supplies; or acts of war or terrorism; availability and cost of materials and labor; cost and availability of capital; competition; continuing acceptance of the IHOP, International House of Pancakes and Applebees brands and concepts by guests and
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franchisees; the Companys overall marketing, operational and financial performance; economic and political conditions; adoption of new, or changes in, accounting policies and practices; and other factors discussed from time to time in the Companys news releases, public statements and/or filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, especially the Risk Factors sections of Annual and Quarterly Reports on Forms 10-K and 10-Q. Forward-looking information is provided by the Company pursuant to the safe harbor established under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and should be evaluated in the context of these factors. In addition, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
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