CEC Entertainment, which operates the Chuck E. Cheese's chain of family entertainment centres offering pizza with arcade games, reported a dip in sales in the third quarter of the year.
Total revenues for the three months to September 29 fell 0.4 per cent to $195.9m compared with the previous year, due largely to a 2.1 per cent decrease in store sales. Net income for the quarter decreased 5.1 per cent to $7.4m.
Company president and CEO Michael Magusiak said he was “disappointed” in CEC’s third-quarter store sales, but noted that sales “turned positive” in the first four weeks of the fourth quarter.
The picture was much more positive for the first nine months of the year, however, with net income increasing 8.4 per cent to $47.9m and total revenues up 2.8 per cent to $643.2m. Overall, sales were up 0.8 per cent.
Earnings were boosted by new store openings and this expansion looks set to continue. By the end of 2013, CEC plans to have opened eight to nine new company-owned stores. It anticipates opening five to six more stores in the fourth quarter alone.
“Our team remains committed to executing our strategic plan in a very high-quality manner,” Magusiak said. “I believe that our capital expenditure plan to impact company stores approximately every two years, in conjunction with new major attractions, will position us for success.
“I also believe that we have a significant opportunity to grow our concept with a combination of new locations both domestically and internationally."
