Diversified Restaurant Holdings Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2016 Results

 Operating profit in 2016 increases 2.6 times and operating margin more than doubles on higher revenue and lower costs 

SOUTHFIELD, Mich., March 10, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Diversified Restaurant Holdings, Inc. SAUC ("DRH" or the "Company"), the largest franchisee for Buffalo Wild Wings^® ("BWW") with 64 stores across five states, today announced results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 25, 2016 ("2016").  On December 25, 2016, DRH completed the spinoff of its former subsidiary, Bagger Dave's Burger Tavern, Inc., which is now reported as discontinued operations. 

Results from continuing operations for 2016, versus the same period a year ago, were: 

• Total revenue increased 15% to $166.5 million
  
• Same-store sales decreased 3.0%
  
• Restaurant-level EBITDA increased 8.7% to $32.3 million ⁽¹⁾
  
• Restaurant-level EBITDA margin decreased 1.1 points to 19.4%
  
• Operating profit increased 157.3% to $7.3 million
  
• Adjusted EBITDA improved 8.0% to $23.3 million ⁽¹⁾ 

Improvements in total revenue, EBITDA and operating profit were impacted, in part, by the inclusion of a full year of operations for 18 restaurants acquired in mid-2015, in addition to three new unit openings and one unit closing in 2015, and two new unit openings in 2016. 

Results from continuing operations for the fourth quarter of 2016, versus the same period a year ago, were: 

• Total revenue decreased 3.6% to $40.8 million
  
• Same-store sales decreased 5.4%
  
• Restaurant-level EBITDA decreased 19.1% to $6.7 million ⁽¹⁾
  
• Restaurant-level EBITDA margin decreased 2.2 points to 16.5%
  
• Operating profit increased $0.6 to $0.9 million
  
• Adjusted EBITDA decreased 29.8% to $4.5 million ⁽¹⁾ 

Same-store sales declined in the month of December 2016 partially as a result of unfavorable weather in the Midwest and exacerbated by the calendar shift in 2016 vs. 2015 whereby the Christmas holiday fell on a weekend and the vast majority of important sports events fell into early 2017. 

(1) See attached table for a reconciliation of GAAP net loss to Restaurant-level EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA 

David G. Burke, President and CEO, commented, "With the successful spin-off of Bagger Dave's, we are now exclusively focused on driving strong performance and growth with our Buffalo Wild Wings franchise stores, after another strong year of growth in 2016.  We will continue to tightly manage our costs and use our strong positive cash flow to reduce debt and strengthen our balance sheet, providing greater financial flexibility and enhancing our future growth potential. 

"While faced with the headwinds hitting the restaurant industry, particularly in the fourth quarter, we believe we are doing what it takes to increase traffic, deliver on our value proposition and enhance the customer experience.  In concert with corporate efforts, we are promoting FastBreak™ Lunch, Half-Price Wing Tuesdays®, and the Blazin' Rewards® loyalty program, all of which are attracting customers.  We now offer delivery service through third parties in 24 locations, and recently began to promote large group private parties and events in many of our key markets.  We also completed six renovations in 2016 and now have 27 restaurants with the newer Stadia design - another traffic booster.  We expect 2017 to be a stronger year." 

(1) See attached table for a reconciliation of GAAP net loss to Restaurant-level EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA 

Balance Sheet Highlights - Continuing Operations
Cash and cash equivalents were $4.0 million at December 25, 2016 compared with $13.5 million at 2015 year-end.  Total debt decreased $5.1 million to $121.2 million at the end of 2016. Capital expenditures were $12.5 million in 2016 and were for new restaurant development, restaurant refreshes and remodels, down from $20.2 million in 2015. 

Fiscal 2017 Guidance
The Company expects the following in 2017: 

• Revenue of $173 million to $178 million
  
• Restaurant-level EBITDA of $33 million to $36 million
  
• Adjusted EBITDA between $23.5 million to $26.5 million
  
• Capital expenditures of approximately $4 million to $6 million
  -  One new restaurant is under construction and expected to open in the second quarter
  -  Two to four remodels are planned for 2017 which are targeted at approximately $0.6 million each 

Webcast, Conference Call and Presentation
DRH will host a conference call and live webcast on Friday, March 10, 2017 at 10:00 A.M. Eastern Time, during which management will review the financial and operating results for the fourth quarter and full year 2016, and discuss its corporate strategies and outlook.  A question-and-answer session will follow. 

A presentation that will be referenced during the conference call is available on the Company's website at www.diversifiedrestaurantholdings.com.  

The teleconference can be accessed by calling (201) 689-8562.  The webcast can be monitored on the Company's website at www.diversifiedrestaurantholdings.com.  

A telephonic replay will be available from 1:00 P.M. ET on the day of the call through Friday, March 17, 2017.  To listen to the archived call, dial (412) 317-6671 and enter the conference ID number 13653306, or access the webcast replay at www.diversifiedrestaurantholdings.com, where a transcript will also be posted once available. 

About Diversified Restaurant Holdings, Inc.
Diversified Restaurant Holdings, Inc. is the largest franchisee for Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar with 64 BWW franchised restaurants in key markets in Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Missouri.  The Company routinely posts news and other important information on its website at www.diversifiedrestaurantholdings.com. 

Safe Harbor Statement
The information made available in this news release and the Company's March 10, 2017 earnings conference call contain forward-looking statements which reflect DRH's current view of future events, results of operations, cash flows, performance, business prospects and opportunities. Wherever used, the words "anticipate," "believe," "expect," "intend," "plan," "project," "will continue," "will likely result," "may," and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements as such term is defined in the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.  Any such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties and the Company's spinoff, actual growth, results of operations, financial condition, cash flows, performance, business prospects and opportunities could differ materially from historical results or current expectations. Some of these risks include, without limitation, the impact of economic and industry conditions, competition, food and drug safety issues, store expansion and remodeling, labor relations issues, costs of providing employee benefits, regulatory matters, legal and administrative proceedings, information technology, security, severe weather, natural disasters, accounting matters, other risk factors relating to business or industry and other risks detailed from time to time in the Securities and Exchange Commission filings of DRH. Forward-looking statements contained herein speak only as of the date made and, thus, DRH undertakes no obligation to update or publicly announce the revision of any of the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect new information, future events, developments or changed circumstances or for any other reason. 

FINANCIAL TABLES FOLLOW

⁽¹⁾ Note: There were additional one-time expenses related to the acquisition that were identified or reassigned after the close of the Third Quarter 2015 that have an impact on each quarter of 2015 and has been added to represent the true full year 2015 Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted Net Income. 

⁽²⁾ Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA represents net income (loss) attributable to DRH plus the sum of non-restaurant specific general and administrative expenses, restaurant pre-opening costs, loss on property and equipment disposals, the change in fair value of derivative instruments, depreciation and amortization, other income and expenses, interest, taxes, income attributable to noncontrolling interest and non-recurring expenses related to acquisitions, equity offerings or other non-recurring expenses. Adjusted EBITDA represents net income (loss) attributable to DRH plus the sum of restaurant pre-opening costs, loss on property and equipment disposals, the change in fair value of derivative instruments, depreciation and amortization, other income and expenses, interest, taxes, income attributable to noncontrolling interest, and non-recurring expenses. Adjusted Net Income represents net income (loss) attributable to DRH plus the tax adjusted sum of non-recurring expenses that exist in Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, non-recurring expenses that occur outside of EBITDA, loss on property and equipment disposals, and restaurant pre-opening costs.  We are presenting Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted Net Income, which are not presented in accordance with GAAP, because we believe they provide an additional metric by which to evaluate our operations. When considered together with our GAAP results and the reconciliation to our net income, we believe they provide a more complete understanding of our business than could be obtained absent this disclosure. We use Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted Net Income together with financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP, such as revenue, income from operations, net income, and cash flows from operations, to assess our historical and prospective operating performance and to enhance the understanding of our core operating performance. Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted Net Income are presented because: (i) we believe they are useful measures for investors to assess the operating performance of our business without the effect of non-cash depreciation and amortization expenses; (ii) we believe investors will find these measures useful in assessing our ability to service or incur indebtedness; and (iii) they are used internally as benchmarks to evaluate our operating performance or compare our performance to that of our competitors. 

Additionally, we present Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA because it excludes the impact of general and administrative expenses and restaurant pre-opening costs, which is non-recurring . The use of Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA thereby enables us and our investors to compare our operating performance between periods and to compare our operating performance to the performance of our competitors. The measure is also widely used within the restaurant industry to evaluate restaurant level productivity, efficiency, and performance. The use of Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted Net Income as performance measures permits a comparative assessment of our operating performance relative to our performance based on GAAP results, while isolating the effects of some items that vary from period to period without any correlation to core operating performance or that vary widely among similar companies. Companies within our industry exhibit significant variations with respect to capital structure and cost of capital (which affect interest expense and tax rates) and differences in book depreciation of property and equipment (which affect relative depreciation expense), including significant differences in the depreciable lives of similar assets among various companies. Our management team believes that Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA facilitate company-to-company comparisons within our industry by eliminating some of the foregoing variations. 

Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted Net Income are not determined in accordance with GAAP and should not be considered in isolation or as an alternative to net income, income from operations, net cash provided by operating, investing, or financing activities, or other financial statement data presented as indicators of financial performance or liquidity, each as presented in accordance with GAAP. Neither Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA nor Adjusted EBITDA should be considered as a measure of discretionary cash available to us to invest in the growth of our business. Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA as presented may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies and our presentation of Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA should not be construed as an inference that our future results will be unaffected by unusual items. Our management recognizes that Adjusted Restaurant-Level EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA have limitations as analytical financial measures. 

Investor and Media Contact:
Deborah K. Pawlowski
Kei Advisors LLC
716.843.3908
dpawlowski@keiadvisors.com