Restaurant Brands International's (QSR) first-quarter earnings and revenue topped Wall Street's estimates Wednesday, while the restaurant operator's comparable sales growth was in line with consensus.
The Burger King parent's adjusted earnings rose to $0.86 a share in the quarter through March 31 from $0.75 a year earlier, while revenue climbed 7.4% to $2.26 billion. Those results surpassed the Street's projections for $0.83 and $2.24 billion, respectively. Comparable sales grew 3.2%, matching the Street's views. Net restaurant growth was 2.6% versus a 3.3% increase a year earlier.
The company's shares were down 5.5% in afternoon trade. So far in 2026, the stock has gained roughly 13% in value.
First-quarter comparable sales grew 1.6% at the Tim Hortons brand, 5.8% at Burger King, and 5.7% at the international segment. The Firehouse Subs saw a 0.5% drop, while Popeyes plunged 6.5%.
"Tim Hortons and international each delivered their 20th consecutive quarter of positive comparable sales," Chief Executive Josh Kobza said in a statement. "At Burger King, our results reflect several years of hard work by our franchisees and teams."
Restaurant Brands is on course to repurchase roughly $500 million in shares for 2026, Chief Financial Officer Sami Siddiqui said on an earnings conference call, according to a FactSet transcript.
"We are closely monitoring beef costs and expect normalization over time, with relief now anticipated closer to 2027," Siddiqui told analysts.
The company continues to expect comparable sales growth of more than 3% from 2024 to 2028 and reach net restaurant growth north of 5% towards the end of its algorithm period.
Restaurant Brands is on track to deliver about 1,800 net new restaurants a year by 2028, Siddiqui said. "We are continuing to simplify the business and have a path to sunset Restaurant Holdings by the end of 2027."
Price: $77.08, Change: $-4.59, Percent Change: -5.62%