Bj's Restaurants, Inc. (BJRI) Tops Q1 EPS by 52c, Revenues Beat

Bj's Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ: BJRI) reported Q1 EPS of ($0.14), $0.52 better than the analyst estimate of ($0.66). Revenue for the quarter came in at $223.3 million versus the consensus estimate of $205.12 million.

First Quarter 2021 Compared to First Quarter 2020

• Total revenues decreased 12.3% to $223.3 million
• Total restaurant operating weeks increased 0.3%
• Comparable restaurant sales declined 13.0%
• Net loss of $3.1 million compared to net loss of $4.3 million
  • First quarter 2020 net loss includes a $2.3 million pretax impairment charge for one restaurant.
• Diluted net loss per share of $0.14 compared to diluted net loss per share of $0.22
  • First quarter 2020 net loss per share includes a $0.09 impairment charge for one restaurant.
• Adjusted EBITDA of $12.7 million, compared to $15.1 million

“The continued efforts of our resilient team members and our entrepreneurial approach to responding to the many challenges presented by the pandemic, combined with the energy and broad appeal of the BJ’s concept, drove solid first quarter results that exceeded expectations,” commented Greg Trojan, Chief Executive Officer. “With many states easing restrictions on dining room capacity during the quarter, including California where we operate 62 of our 210 restaurants, guests have returned to dine, socialize and enjoy our differentiated environment and delicious menu and beverage offerings. With all of our dining rooms re-opened, though still subject to local social distancing and capacity restrictions, our weekly sales averages improved from $66,400 in January 2021 to $97,300 in March 2021, marking our highest weekly sales average since the start of the pandemic. We finished March with an approximately 17% comparable restaurant sales decline compared to March 2019, which we believe is a better representation for measuring comparable restaurant sales in 2021 given the pandemic’s significant impact on 2020 sales. Our sales momentum has continued in the first three weeks of April with weekly sales averaging approximately $102,500 and comparable restaurant sales down just 7% as compared to April 2019. We are encouraged by our continued sales momentum particularly given the fact that most of our California restaurants remain limited to 50% capacity and our late night business remains challenged. The return of our guests and improving sales trends helped drive adjusted EBITDA of $12.7 million for the quarter.

“In addition to building on the sales momentum from easing restrictions, we are also leveraging a variety of new practices and processes to continue to drive near- and long-term traffic and sales growth. Our BJ’s Brewhouse Beer Club, which successfully launched in our Sacramento, California restaurants in 2020, has been expanded to most of our California restaurants. We also continue to strengthen and expand our catering options and family meal bundles to maintain the momentum established over the last twelve months for this previously under-utilized segment of our business. Furthermore, we are leveraging our strong technology and digital foundation to provide our guests more personal and convenient experiences to drive additional sales,” continued Trojan.

“Our strong balance sheet will enable us to opportunistically re-accelerate new restaurant growth as we enter a ‘new normal’ operating environment. In 2021, we plan to open restaurants in Merrillville, Indiana and Lansing, Michigan, both of which were under construction at the outset of the pandemic last year. We also intend to re-open our Richmond, Virginia restaurant in the second half of this year, our only location across the country that remains closed. Our long-term growth opportunity has not been adversely affected by the pandemic and, accordingly, our real estate development team is assembling a robust new restaurant pipeline for 2022 and beyond. We remain confident that the BJ’s concept can grow to at least 425 restaurants domestically and that the combination of our sales momentum, higher cash flows, and strong balance sheet can readily support an acceleration in our restaurant expansion program. As we have always done, we will continue to prioritize an approach that balances new restaurant growth with the quality and level of hospitality our guests know and love,” concluded Trojan.

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Bj's Restaurants, Inc. (BJRI) click here.

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