A rise in first-quarter profit at CKE Restaurants Inc., the operator of the Hardee's and Carl's Jr. chains, boosted the company's shares Thursday.
After the market closed Wednesday, the company said its profit rose 8 percent, and earnings per share beat Wall Street analysts' estimates by 4 cents.
The profit was helped by a lower share count in the quarter and a slight increase in same-store sales at Carl's Jr. restaurants.
Same-store sales, or sales at locations open at least a year, is a key indicator of restaurant performance since it measures growth at existing locations rather than newly-opened ones.
Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Brian Moore said in a note to investors that the Carpinteria, Calif., company's results stemmed largely from revenue from franchise restaurants.
CKE has been attempting to transition to a system where more Hardee's restaurants are owned by franchisees rather than the company. That strategy typically insulates companies somewhat from restaurant operating costs since the franchisee must pay them.
Shares rose 40 cents, or 3.3 percent, to $12.70 in afternoon trading.
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