The restaurant chain
Panera Bread Co.
(
PNRA
) recently appointed Thomas Patrick Kelly, aged 54, as the Chief
Financial Officer (CFO), effective immediately.
The management churn comes in the wake of the resignation of
Jeff Kip from the position of CFO in March 2012. Jeff Kip served as
the CFO of the company since 2006 and resigned last month to join
IAC/InterActiveCorp. (
IACI
), a company engaged in the Internet business in the United States
and internationally.
Kelly has been appointed on an interim basis for an initial term
of up to six months. Meanwhile, the Sunset Hills-based company will
continue the search for a permanent CFO and Kelly's period of
service may be extended on a monthly basis, if the company fails to
appoint the new CEO within the deadline.
Kelly will report directly to Bill Moreton, President and
Co-Chief Executive Officer. Kelly will be completely responsible
for the company's financial operations during his tenure.
Kelly boasts an experience of a decade in wide range of
industries like airlines, manufacturing or technology as CFO and
CEO both on permanent and interim basis. Based on his rich
experience and expertise, we remain positive on Kelly's appointment
during this transition period. We believe that he will do
justice to the position of CFO and guide the company to new
heights
In the recently completed fourth quarter 2011, the company
reported adjusted earnings of $1.42 per share, surpassing the Zacks
Consensus Estimate by a penny. Reported earnings of $1.31 also
outpaced the year-ago level of $1.21 per share. During the quarter,
total revenue rose 16% year over year to $495.8 million as
system-wide comparable net bakery-cafe sales expanded 4.4%.
For full-year 2012, Panera raised its earnings per share
guidance from $5.38-$5.48 to $5.50-$5.55, reflecting a
year-over-year earnings growth of 18-19%. The full-year guidance
represents company-owned comparable net bakery-cafe sales growth in
the range of 4.5% to 5.5%, up from the previous forecast of 4.0% to
5.0%.
Panera expects first quarter 2012 earnings in the range of $1.33
to $1.35 per share and company-owned comparable net bakery-cafe
sales growth of 7.0% to 7.5%.
Panera, which competes with
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc.
(
CMG
), currently retains a Zacks #2 Rank, which translates into a
short-term 'Buy' rating. We are maintaining our long-term "Neutral"
recommendation on the stock.
CHIPOTLE MEXICN (
CMG
): Free Stock Analysis Report
PANERA BREAD CO (
PNRA
): Free Stock Analysis Report
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