Transcript • Aug. 14, 2025 7:30 AM • Boston Pizza Royalties Income Fund (BPZZF)
Transcript
Aug. 14, 2025 7:30 AM
Boston Pizza Royalties Income Fund (BPZZF)
Operator: Hello. This is the Chorus Call conference operator. Thank you for standing by. Welcome to Boston Pizza's Second Quarter 2025 Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] The conference is being recorded on August 14, 2025. [Operator Instructions] At this time, I would like to turn the conference over to Michael Harbinson, Chief Financial Officer. Please go ahead.
Michael Harbinson: Very good. Thank you, and welcome to the call. Today, we'll be discussing the 2025 second quarter results for Boston Pizza Royalties Income Fund, or the Fund, and for Boston Pizza International, or BPI. For complete details on our financial results, please see our second quarter materials filed earlier today on SEDAR+ or visit the Fund's website at bpincomefund.com. Should you require additional information after the call, you can reach us via the Investor Relations phone number that's listed in our press release. The Fund is a limited purpose open-ended trust established under the laws of British Columbia to acquire indirectly certain trademarks and trade names used by BPI in its Boston Pizza Restaurants in Canada. BPI pays royalty income and distribution income to the Fund based on franchise revenues of Royalty Pool restaurants. For a complete description of the Fund and its business, please see the annual information form dated March 28, 2025, which was filed on sedarplus.ca. Before I turn the call over to Jordan Holm, President of BPI, I'd like to note that certain information in the following discussion may constitute forward-looking information. For a more complete definition of forward-looking information and the associated risks, please refer to the Fund's management discussion and analysis that was issued earlier today. Forward-looking information is provided as of the date of this call, and except as required by law, we assume no obligation to update or revise forward-looking information to reflect new events or circumstances. And with that, I will now turn the call over to Jordan. Jordan?
Jordan Holm: Thank you, Michael, and welcome, everyone, to Boston Pizza's Second Quarter Investor Conference Call. Today, I'll be discussing our second quarter results and share a brief outlook. Michael will summarize our key financial highlights. And as usual, we'll leave time for your questions at the end of today's call. In the second quarter, Boston Pizza achieved the strongest same-restaurant sales growth since the first quarter of 2012, excluding COVID recovery quarters. These results show that the continuing effectiveness of our ongoing promotions and sustained momentum in our takeout delivery business have made a significant impact on our guests. The Fund posted franchise sales from restaurants in the Royalty Pool of $251.8 million for the quarter and $483.0 million year-to-date, representing an increase of 6.3% and 5.3%, respectively, versus the same periods 1 year ago. Same-restaurant sales or SRS, was 6.4% for the second quarter and 5.5% year-to-date. SRS for the second quarter and year-to- date was principally due to effective promotional initiatives, continued momentum in takeout delivery and favorable comparisons to a softer performance in the same period in the prior year. Strong SRS enabled the trustees of the fund to increase the monthly distribution rate on the units by 4.3% from the previous rate of $0.115 per unit to $0.12 per unit, commencing with the July distribution, which is payable on August 29, 2025, to unitholders of record on August 21, 2025, as Michael will describe in more detail later. From a marketing perspective, we began the second quarter of 2025 with a dynamic promotion during the hockey playoffs. This initiative featured a variety of innovative menu items supported by extensive media advertising on digital video, television, social media and other channels centered on Boston Pizza's Manifesto Win campaign. Our efforts enhanced every aspect of the Boston Pizza Sports Bar experience, ensuring maximum enjoyment for our guests and the presence of a Canadian team and contention into the finals of the hockey playoffs boosted sales during the second quarter. Additionally, June was marked by a historic update of the Boston Pizza brand, including only the second [ Rondel ] design in our 61-year history. The updated Boston Pizza brand launched on June 25, 2025, alongside a rejuvenated main national menu and both have been positively received by guests. Synergizing with these initiatives, we announced an exciting new partnership with Live Nation to increase brand engagement with our younger guest demographic. Turning to restaurant development. During the second quarter, 9 restaurants were renovated and 15 restaurants have been renovated year-to-date. We have an array of exciting initiatives lined up to drive sales and maintain the strong guest engagement in the third quarter of 2025, which I'll discuss shortly. But first, I'll hand the call back to Michael for a review of the Fund's financial performance. Michael?
Michael Harbinson: Thank you, Jordan. The Fund posted Royalty income of $10.1 million for the quarter and $19.3 million year-to-date compared to $9.5 million and $18.4 million, respectively, for the same periods 1 year ago. The Fund posted distribution income of $3.3 million for the quarter and $6.3 million year-to-date compared to $3.1 million and $6 million, respectively, for the periods 1 year ago. Royalty income and distribution income for the quarter and year-to-date were based on 372 Boston Pizza Restaurants in the Royalty Pool that reported franchise sales of $251.8 million for the quarter and $483.0 million year-to-date. For the same periods in 2024, royalty and distribution income were based on the Royalty Pool of 372 Boston Pizza Restaurants, reporting franchise sales of $236.8 million and $458.8 million, respectively. The Fund's net and comprehensive income was $14.3 million for the quarter compared to $7.5 million for the second quarter of 2024. The $6.8 million increase in the Fund's net and comprehensive income for the quarter compared to the second quarter of the previous year was primarily due to a $7.9 million increase in fair value gain, a $0.8 million increase in royalty income and distribution income and a $0.1 million decrease in interest expense on debt and financing fees, all partially offset by an increase in current and deferred income tax expense of $0.2 million. The Fund's net and comprehensive income was $20.7 million year-to-date compared to $15.9 million year-to-date in 2024. The $4.8 million increase in the Fund's net and comprehensive income year-to-date compared to the same period in 2024 was primarily due to a $4.8 million increase in fair value gain, a $1.3 million increase in royalty income and distribution income, a $0.1 million decrease in administrative expenses and a $0.1 million decrease in interest expense on debt and financing fees, partially offset by an increase in current and deferred income tax expense of $1.5 million. The Fund's cash flows generated from operating activities for the quarter were $9.9 million compared to $9.6 million in the second quarter of 2024. The increase of $0.3 million was primarily due to an increase in Royalty and distribution income of $0.8 million, partially offset by an increase in income taxes paid of $0.4 million and a decrease in changes in working capital of just $0.1 million. Cash flows generated from operating activities year-to-date was $19.2 million compared to $18.7 million in the same period in prior year. The increase of $0.5 million was primarily due to an increase in Royalty income and distribution income of $1.3 million, partially offset by an increase in income taxes paid of $0.4 million and a decrease in changes in working capital of $0.4 million. While net and comprehensive income or loss and cash flows from operating activities are both measures under IFRS accounting standards, or IFRS, the Fund is of the view that net income or loss and cash flows from operating activities do not provide the most meaningful measurement of the Fund's ability to pay distributions. Net income contains noncash items that do not affect the Fund's cash flow, whereas cash flows from operating activities as a measure is not inclusive of all of the Fund's required cash outflows and is therefore not indicative of cash available for distribution to unitholders. Noncash items include fair value adjustments on the investment in Boston Pizza Canada Limited Partnership, the Class B unit liability, interest rate swaps and changes in deferred income taxes. As a consequence, the Fund reports the non-IFRS metrics of distributable cash and payout ratio to provide investors with, in the Fund's opinion, more meaningful information regarding the Fund's ability to pay distribution to unitholders. The Fund generated distributable cash of $8 million for the quarter, compared to $7.5 million for the same period in 2024. The increase in distributable cash of $0.5 million or 6.1% was primarily due to increased cash flows generated from operating activities of $0.3 million, SIFT tax on units adjustment of $0.2 million and a decrease in interest paid on debt of $0.1 million, partially offset by an increase in Class B unit entitlement of $0.1 million. The Fund generated distributable cash of $15.3 million on a year-to-date basis compared to $14.8 million for the same period in 2024. The increase in distributable cash of $0.5 million or 3.1% was primarily due to increased cash flows generated from operating activities of $0.5 million. The Fund generated distributable cash per unit of $0.374 for the quarter and $0.718 year-to-date compared to $0.352 and $0.696, respectively, for the same periods in 2024. The increase in the distributable cash per unit of $0.022 or 6.3% for the quarter and $0.022 or 3.2% year-to-date was primarily attributable to the increase in distributable cash outlined above. The Fund's payout ratio for the quarter was 92.3% compared to 96.2% in the second quarter of 2024. The decrease in the Fund's payout ratio for the quarter was due to distributable cash increasing by $0.5 million or 6.1%, partially offset by distributions paid increasing by $0.1 million or 1.8% year-to-date. Year-to-date, the Fund's payout ratio was 96.1% compared to 96.5% year-to-date in 2024. The decrease in the Fund's payout ratio year-to-date was due to distributable cash increasing by $0.5 million or 3.1%, partially offset by distributions paid increasing by $0.4 million or 2.7%. On a trailing 12-month basis, the Fund's payout ratio was 99.6% as at June 30, 2025. On August 13, 2025, the trustees of the Fund approved a cash distribution for the period of July 1, 2025 to July 31, 2025, at an increased rate of $0.12 per unit, which will be paid on August 29, 2025, to unitholders of record at the close of business on August 21, 2025. This is an increase of $0.05 per unit or 4.3% from the previous monthly distribution rate of $0.115 per unit, equaling an annualized distribution rate of $1.44 per unit. The trustees' objective in setting a monthly distribution amount is that it be sustainable. The trustees will continue to closely monitor the Fund's available cash balances given the fluctuating economic outlook. And with that, I shall turn the call back over to Jordan for more on the outlook. Jordan?
Jordan Holm: Thank you, Michael. as we transition into the fall, we'll continue to market our rejuvenated Boston Pizza brand image to younger guests through our partnership with Live Nation, including through a national contest in which we will give away over 400 tickets to amazing concert experiences all over Canada throughout the third quarter. We will also refresh our promotional campaign on various digital media channels to bolster continued guest engagement with our $15 lunch menu. Additionally, our popular Boston Pizza Kids Card promotion will return in the third quarter, which includes a $5 donation to the Boston Pizza Foundation for which families will receive a Boston Pizza Kids Card that includes 5 free kids meals, making that a perennial favorite on the Boston Pizza calendar. Our second quarter franchise sales were robust, reflecting the enduring strength of our business model. At the same time, we are proactively assessing shifts in the trade environment and their potential effects on Boston Pizza restaurants across Canada, ensuring we remain agile and responsive. Our priorities continue to center on enriching the guest experience, empowering our franchisee partners and fostering long-term sustainable growth through forward-thinking strategies and operational excellence. With that, I'd like to turn it back to the operator to begin the question-and-answer session. Operator?
Operator: [Operator Instructions] The first question comes from Nick Cochrane with Acumen Capital.
Nick Corcoran: Congrats on the strong quarter. Just one question on the same-restaurant growth in the second quarter. Any indication how sales have tracked into the third quarter and maybe more specifically in July?
Jordan Holm: Yes. So it's always interesting to report in the middle of August on a quarter that ends 6 weeks ago. But we -- so we'll stay away from that because our practice is not to kind of give forward-looking guidance. That said, I think you can look at the last 3 quarters, the fourth quarter of 2024 and the first 2 quarters of 2025, having just reported kind of the second quarter and year-to-date results this morning. and see that the momentum in terms of top line sales and obviously, the effects that has on distributable cash and the distribution increases both earlier this year and the one announced today. So feeling like the momentum is strong, and that certainly sets us up to continue that into the third quarter.
Nick Corcoran: That's fair. And maybe asking a question about the quarter more specifically. Were sales relatively flat through the quarter? Or do you see a build through the quarter?
Jordan Holm: On a month-by-month basis, you mean? Michael, maybe you could get into sort of the more granular breakdown of monthly sales or sort of the trend line for Q2.
Michael Harbinson: Yes, for sure. So the sales for the quarter were positive in all periods of the quarter. So I think that's something to note. They did taper off a little bit towards the end of the quarter. But I think one thing I'd call out is where we were getting the growth was very widespread. And what I mean by that is the growth was positive in all channels of the business, channel, meaning kind of dine-in, Sports Bar, kind of family dining section, the patio as well as take it and delivery. So we're seeing growth kind of across the business as well as every province for the quarter saw positive growth. So encouraged that there was kind of widespread growth throughout all aspects of the business. And as Jordan said, if you look quarter-to-quarter, for the last 3 quarters, it's been kind of a generally positive trend.
Nick Corcoran: Great. Then switching to the number of locations. Are there any new stores in the pipeline right now?
Jordan Holm: Yes. We have 2 locations that are under construction currently and a number of, I'll call it, irons in the fire locations that we're working with franchise partners on future development of new restaurants. Obviously, our focus over the last several years has been really stabilizing the core, the 372 restaurants that we have in operation today, making sure that the after effects of COVID, which were quite pronounced in certain markets where restrictions were extended and the financial pressures and elements did not go away quickly. And so that's been our focus is building back up the sales on a per location basis. That's why we're very much encouraged by the best quarterly same-restaurant sales results for Q2 of 2025, but the strongest quarter from that measurement that we've had since the first quarter of 2012, excluding, of course, the few quarters that were anomalous and the after effects of the pandemic. So very encouraged by the top line sales, and that helps us then to turn our focus back to new restaurant opportunities, whether they be with existing franchisees looking to expand their portfolio of BP restaurants or new investors coming into the system and opening up new markets for us or underserviced markets across Canada. We still believe there's dozens and dozens of places across the country. We expect to have at least a couple more this year. and then focus on the 2026 development plan from there.
Nick Corcoran: And with relatively strong performance from the network, have you seen an increase in the pipeline for potential new locations?
Jordan Holm: Yes. It's always a math exercise at each location, each market that we look at for future development. Over the last several years, we've been focusing on some nontraditional development for us, meaning locations that are inside recreation centers, inside airports, inside hotels, universities, different than our traditional stand-alone model that represents the majority of the restaurants that we have certainly across the country. In addition to the nontraditional locations. We've also done some restaurant conversions. So some existing locations that are one-offs or different brands, and they can be converted into a Boston Pizza. And those -- both of those channels for us in new development are quite compelling, meaning that the unit economics look really strong and help us get out of the gate with new partners in new markets in a way that's long term and sustainable for our franchise partners. But they're also traditional. The 2 that we have in construction for this year are more traditional developments for us, meaning they are new builds, either ground up or from an existing shell. They're both brand-new restaurants and new markets that we haven't operated in before that we're excited to see later this year.
Operator: Since there are no more questions, this concludes the question-and-answer session. I would like to turn the conference back over to Jordan Holm for any closing remarks. Please go ahead.
Jordan Holm: Thank you, operator. Since there are no further questions, Michael and I would like to thank you all for joining us today. As a proud Canadian restaurant, we appreciate your continued interest and your support. We look forward to reconnecting with you during our third quarter conference call in November 2025. Thank you, everyone, and enjoy the rest of your day.
Michael Harbinson: Thank you.
Operator: This brings to an end today's conference call. You may disconnect your lines. Thank you for participating, and have a pleasant day.
