Benihana Restaurants' Profit Falls 50 Pct In 1Q

MIAMI (AP) — Restaurant chain Benihana Inc. on Monday said its first-quarter profit fell 50 percent as it struggled to draw customers during the recession.

The company reported that it earned $1.1 million, or 5 cents per share, for the quarter that ended July 19, down from $2.2 million, or 12 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier.

Total revenue grew 1.6 percent to $96 million.

The results missed Wall Street expectations. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters anticipated the company would earn 10 cents per share for the quarter on revenue of $97.3 million.

Benihana operates the nation's largest chain of sushi and Japanese-theme restaurants and, like many restaurant companies, is struggling as consumers spend less on eating out.

CEO Richard Stockinger said the current economy is "perhaps the most difficult environment we have seen in decades."

The company says its sales at locations open at least a year, a key indicator of a retailer's or restaurant company's financial health, fell 13.1 percent at Benihana Teppanyaki restaurants — the bulk of its business. Same-store sales fell 14.8 at Haru restaurants and grew 3.5 percent at the company's RA Sushi chain.