Restaurant Brands International Inc.

you will hear a tone to confirm that you are in the queue. To exit the question queue, you may press start, then two. All callers will be limited to one question. Please note, this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Kendall Peck, RBI's Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Thank you operator. Good morning everyone and welcome to Restaurant Brands International's earnings call for the third quarter ended September 30th, 2025. Joining me on the call today are Restaurant Brands International's Executive Chairman Patrick Doyle, CEO Josh Kabza, and CFO Sami Siddiqui. Following remarks from Josh, Sami, and Patrick, we will open the call to questions. Today's discussion may include forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks detailed in the press release issued this morning and in our SEC filings. We will also reference non-GAAP financial measures, reconciliations of which can be found in the press release and trending schedules available on our investor relations website. As a reminder, organic adjusted operating income growth excludes results from the restaurant holding segment. In addition, on February 14th, 2025, We acquired substantially all the remaining equity interests in Burger King China from our joint venture partners. BK China has been classified as held for sale and reported as discontinued operations in our financial statements as we are actively working to identify a new controlling shareholder. That said, BK China's KPIs continue to be included in our international segment KPIs. A breakdown of BK China's KPIs and its impact on our 2024 financial statements can be found in the trending schedules available on our website. For calendar planning purposes, our preliminary Q4 earnings call is scheduled for the morning of February 12th, 2026. And now I'll turn the call over to Josh.

Thanks, Kendall. And good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us. Q3 was a strong quarter for us. In a tougher consumer environment, our teams and franchisees once again delivered results that set us apart. Comparable sales were up 4%, net restaurant growth was 2.8%, and system-wide sales grew 6.9%. Combined with disciplined cost management across the business, this top-line performance drove 8.8% organic adjusted operating income growth and double-digit nominal EPS growth. These results demonstrate that our strategy is working. Fueling continued momentum through the strength of our brands the dedication of our teams and franchisees, and the value we're delivering to guests every day. Across our largest segments, we continue to see strong execution. Tim Hortons Canada and our international business, which together represent roughly 70% of our adjusted operating income, delivered another quarter of impressive results. Both are performing at a high level and have delivered 18 consecutive quarters of positive same-store sales, underpinned by great food and beverages, strong operations, and engage franchisees. I'm also encouraged by the continued progress at Burger King in the US. The team is making meaningful strides, strengthening the brand's value proposition through delicious menu innovation, better operations, and impactful remodels. The benefits of this work are showing up in solid absolute results and sales outperformance versus the burger QSR segment. Even in a challenging macro backdrop, we continue to deliver great results the right way. providing guests quality products, exceptional service, and unmatched convenience. With that focus and with disciplined execution across our teams, we remain confident in our path to delivering at least 8% organic AOI growth in 2025. Now let's turn to our results, starting with Tim Hortons, which represents roughly 44% of our operating profit and stands out as a consistent performer and contributor to RBI's growth. Tim Hortons in Canada continues to exemplify what happens when you get the fundamentals right and keep innovating. It's a business built on strong brand love, great restaurant-level execution, affordable everyday value, and a steady stream of menu innovation that keeps our guests coming back. Comparable sales grew 4.2% in Q3, outperforming the broader Canadian QSR industry by roughly three points. We continued to build on our breakfast leadership and saw 6.5% growth in breakfast foods, driven by our 100% Canadian freshly cracked scrambled egg platform and the launch of our loaded croissant breakfast sandwich. Guests also responded enthusiastically to our fall baked goods, like the spiced vanilla-filled donut and Halloween Timbits bucket. In the PM day part, the team is thoughtfully expanding our menu. The Thanksgiving stack, a seasonal addition to our premium hot sandwich platform, performed well. And our $8.99 dinner deals after 5 p.m. are attracting new guests and strengthening our position in dinner meal occasions. Total beverage sales grew 4%, reaching record highs in both cold and espresso-based beverages. Our improved iced lattes were a particular standout and helped to drive 10% growth in cold beverages. Our fall beverage lineup is also performing well, featuring chai lattes, the return of pumpkin spice, and new protein lattes that are resonating with health-conscious guests. We also expanded the rollout of our new espresso machines, an important investment from our franchisees that will further enhance espresso beverage consistency and quality as this category continues to grow. Operationally, our restaurant owners and team members continue to deliver excellent guest experiences. Guest satisfaction remains at record highs, and speed of service has improved across every day part, now reaching our fastest Q3 levels since 2019. Importantly, PM execution and guest satisfaction scores keep improving, a key focus area as we work to capture share in this historically underutilized day part. We're also advancing our digital initiatives. Kiosk installations are on track to reach about 800 restaurants by year end and are driving higher average checks and strong adoption among younger guests. And we recently announced an exciting new loyalty partnership with Canadian Tire, one of Canada's largest and most trusted retailers, launching in late 2026. This partnership brings together two of Canada's most iconic brands, allowing guests to link their rewards accounts and unlock even more benefits. It's one of several initiatives designed to expand our loyalty base and deepen guest engagement. With over 7 million active TIMMS reward members already spending about 50% more on average than they did before joining, we see significant potential ahead. Finally, we remain on track to return to modest net restaurant growth in Canada in 2025. In August, I joined Axel and his team in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, where we saw firsthand that even in some of our most established markets, there is still room to grow given the strength of demand for Tim's. I'm proud of the results the team delivered in Q3, from strengthening our leadership in breakfast and beverages to unlocking growth in PM food. With a continued focus on innovation, operational excellence, and digital engagement, I'm confident in the long-term growth trajectory for Tim Hortons. Now our international business, which drives 26% of our operating profit and accelerated meaningfully this quarter. Same store sales increased 6.5% and net restaurant growth of 5.1% drove system-wide sales growth of more than 12%. These results reflect the strength of our global franchise network and the effectiveness of our balanced playbook across menu innovation, marketing, digital, and operations. Our same store sales outperform the industry in several key markets, including France, the UK, Spain, and Germany. In France, performance strengthened with the successful launch of our baby burger boxes in July, a shareable snacking platform that's been a big hit with our guests. In September, we expanded our chef collaboration platform to the UK with the launch of the Gordon Ramsay Wagyu burger made with 100% British Wagyu beef, which drove strong engagement and sales. This quarter, we also leveraged our global scale with a cross-market promotion of Naruto, the popular anime series, which performed well across countries like Germany, Brazil, and China. I visited several international markets this quarter, including the UK and China, and was impressed to see the consistency of execution and enthusiasm across the system. In the UK, Burger King is now our fifth international business to surpass $1 billion in system-wide sales and continues to deliver strong top-line growth. adding more than $115 million in sales over just the last 12 months. Meanwhile, Popeyes in the UK is set to open its 100th restaurant in November, just four years after its debut in East London. Popeyes is seeing strong traction across EMEA, where the brand now has more than 1000 restaurants. In Turkey, the team will open 100 restaurants this year, reaching nearly 500 locations by year end. Both markets are great examples of the brand's international potential. Popeyes now ranks among the world's top 10 Western QSR brands outside the U.S. and stands out as the only one that's been growing system-wide sales by over 35%. In China, we're making significant progress at Burger King, with results again exceeding our expectations. Comparable sales grew 10.5% in Q3, with momentum building throughout the quarter, and unit economics once again improved quarter over quarter. Performance was driven by elevated marketing, including the launch of our new CRISPR chicken burger, strong guest response to the Naruto campaign, and continued growth and delivery. Under the leadership of our new local team, we've also continued to strengthen operations to build a stronger foundation for long-term growth. The results we're seeing at Burger King China reinforce our conviction that it is a high potential business, supported by strong brand awareness, favorable category dynamics, and improving unit economics. Sammy, Tiago, and I spent time in Shanghai in September, meeting with several of our prospective partners, and we left encouraged by both the level of interest in the brand and the alignment around our vision for the business. We see a clear path to reigniting growth in this important market and remain confident we'll find the right partner to continue driving it forward. While in Shanghai, we also spent time with the team at Popeyes China, which continues to perform well and remains on track to open around 50 restaurants this year. Looking ahead, we believe we have a clear runway to accelerate development and capture share of the growing chicken QSR segment in China. Taken together, our results highlight the strength and diversity of our international portfolio. With strong execution, great local partners, and a shared commitment to the guest experience, fueling double-digit system-wide sales growth. Turning now to Burger King, which represents roughly 17% of our operating profits. In September, I joined the team in Phoenix for their convention. The energy was amazing, with franchisee confidence in the plan and team near all-time highs. That confidence has been earned over the past three years as Tom and the team, together with our franchisees, execute Reclaim the Flame with focus and consistency, raising the bar on food and service quality, elevating our marketing, and modernizing the restaurant experience. This focus continues to translate into results, with our U.S. comparable sales growing 3.2%. We've outperformed the burger QSR category for many quarters by staying true to our balanced marketing strategy. We're leaning into the Whopper, providing everyday value that guests can trust, and reigniting Burger King's connection with families through innovation and fun partnerships. Our Whopper by You platform is delivering strong results, engaging our guests through personalized takes on their favorite flame-grilled burger. The barbecue brisket and crispy onion Whoppers exceeded expectations, reinforcing the power of our flagship product, And the platform's extension to Walker Jr. is broadening our reach with women and Gen Z guests. Our $5 duos and $7 trio value platforms are also performing well. And the launch of our You Rules of Value campaign builds on that success, celebrating guest choice and personalization while further strengthening our You Rule positioning. In an environment where peers are leaning into short-term deals or headline price cuts, our disciplined value strategy continues to resonate. Looking ahead, we'll maintain this measured approach while keeping our flame-grilled burgers at the center of our story. And we'll support our efforts with innovative family promotions, like our recent Monster Menu. Our marketing and menu innovation are being matched by steady improvements in operations, which are equally as important to delivering guests great everyday value. Since launching Reclaim the Flame in 2022, Burger King has consistently improved in guest-driven operational surveys. and revisit intent now ranks among the top three out of 12 QSR brands. These gains reflect a sharper focus on the fundamentals, quality, accuracy, friendliness, and consistency, and close collaboration with franchisees to sustain that momentum. We're also making good progress modernizing the system, with remodeled restaurants delivering strong uplifts in the team's net of control and average restaurant sales post-remodel of around $2 million. With beef costs elevated, we're mindful of the near-term impact on franchisees. While we still expect roughly 400 remodels in 2025, we're mindful of the commodity cycle and impact on profitability as we manage future remodel schedules with our franchisees. At Carols, performance again outpaced the system, underscoring the importance of strong operations and the impact of modern image. Comparable sales at Carols were 4.8%, and remodels are delivering uplifts ahead of the system average. reflecting the success of our new sizzle image, which is now featured in nearly two-thirds of Carol's remodels completed since 2023. We're also advancing the re-franchising of Burger King restaurants through our Crown Your Career program, as well as with experienced restaurant operators. Overall, Burger King's results show that our plan is working. Operational improvements, creative marketing, and strong franchisee alignment are driving sustained outperformance versus the broader Burger QSR category. Finally, turning to Popeyes and Firehouse Subs. At Popeyes, results were softer this quarter, with U.S. comparable sales down 2% and net restaurant growth of 1.9%, resulting in system-wide sales growth of 0.9%. We're not satisfied with our performance and know there's more work to do. While our limited-time offers, like dippers, drove solid trial from new guests, repeat visitation fell short. And while our wings revamp in August delivered improved guest satisfaction, it proved to be only modestly incremental. It's clear that we need to do a better job focusing on our core offerings, especially our bone and chicken, tenders, and sandwich platforms. And we need to deliver consistent value for everyday guests. We also know that price is just one piece of the value equation. And Jeff and his team are stepping up efforts to improve the overall experience of Popeyes by reprioritizing resources to support our franchisees, focusing investments on restaurant and equipment upgrades that have the biggest impact, and ensuring that new units are opened exclusively with our top operators. It may take some time for these operational improvements to flow through to sales, but we remain very confident that Popeyes has every right to win and take share in an increasingly competitive chicken QSR environment. Popeyes has the best chicken in QSR. It's slowly marinated, hand-battered, and fried in-house, and is rooted in an authentic Louisiana heritage. On top of this, we have a relatively modern asset base, with roughly half of the Popeyes system having been opened in the last decade, good unit economics, and strong franchisee alignment. Finally, Firehouse Subs delivered a solid quarter, with comparable sales up 2.6% and net restaurant growth of 7.7%, which drove 10.7% system-wide sales growth. Performance reflects continued progress in expanding our footprint across North America with great engaged operators and a standout result in Canada. Mike and his team have already opened 100 net new restaurants over the past 12 months, which is five times the pace of growth from when we acquired the business. keeps us on track for another year of accelerating development in 2025, supported by enthusiastic franchisees, solid paybacks, and growing brand awareness. With that, I'll hand it over to Sammy.