MIAMI — Burger King, the fifth largest fast-food chain on this planet, has reached an settlement the place the corporate, with its guardian firm Restaurant Manufacturers Worldwide (RBI), will purchase its largest franchisee firm, Carrols Restaurant Group for about $1 billion.

RBI and Burger King will probably be acquiring all of the Carrols issued and excellent shares that aren’t already held for $9.55 per share in an all-cash transaction, the businesses introduced.

Burger King has greater than 19,000 areas in over 100 international locations worldwide. Carrols operates 1,022 Burger King areas in 23 states within the U.S., which generated roughly $1.8 billion of system gross sales final yr.

“Carrols has demonstrated sturdy and bettering restaurant operations over time,” Tom Curtis, president of Burger King U.S. and Canada, stated in an announcement. “This acquisition is an thrilling accelerator to our ‘Reclaim the Flame’ plan that’s centered on relentlessly pursuing a greater expertise for our visitors. We’re going to quickly transform these eating places over the subsequent 5 years or so and put them again into the fingers of motivated, native franchisees to create superb experiences for our visitors.”

Burger King notes that its Reclaim the Flame initiative has deliberate many remodels following a $400 million introduced funding final yr that it says it should put towards bettering operations, enhancing advertising and expertise and digital enhancements.

On the Carrols acquisition, Josh Kobza, CEO of RBI, stated, “It is a terrific instance of our dedication to place our capital to work to speed up progress and assist Tom (Curtis) and his crew of their broader efforts to have a extra aggressive Burger King restaurant base. The strategic deserves of this acquisition are very compelling and in keeping with our goal to speculate our capital in long-term, high-return alternatives.”

Burger King added that it plans to extend its price of remodels of Carrols areas, with an extra funding of $500 million of capital, which will probably be funded by Carrol’s working money circulate, to replace about 600 of the acquired restaurant areas that the corporate states don’t meet its “trendy picture.”

The Jan. 16 announcement, “is a testomony to our greater than 24,000 Carrols crew members who’ve helped drive the corporate to document ranges of profitability over the previous 12 months,” Deborah Derby, Carrols president and CEO, stated in an announcement. “The outcomes have allowed us, by means of this transaction, to ship instant and sure worth to Carrols shareholders at a beautiful premium to the corporate’s present and historic share costs.”

“Moreover, we consider our crew members will now have extra alternatives as a part of the higher RBI household – in our workplace, within the discipline and particularly in our eating places, together with for long-time managers who might need to turn out to be franchisees themselves,” Derby famous. “We look ahead to working carefully with Tom (Curtis) and the remainder of the Burger King crew within the months and years forward.”

Topic to customary closing necessities, the businesses count on this transaction to be accomplished within the second quarter of 2024.