Burger King's Parent Company Cooks Up Planned Expansion to 40,000 Restaurants

Restaurant Brands International (QSR) - Get Report , owner of Burger King, Tim Hortons, and Popeyes, said Wednesday that it plans to expand to more than 40,000 restaurants globally over the next eight to 10 years in a bid to become one of the largest restaurant chains in the world.

The Toronto-based company said it currently has about 26,000 restaurants, which grew from about 12,000 in 2010. System-wide sales increased from about $15 billion to over $32 billion in the same time period.

Restaurant Brands, which is hosting its first investor day in New York on Wednesday, said that the five-year outlook for growth in the global burger market is expected at 5% annually and growth in the global coffee and chicken markets is expected to be 6% annually.

"RBI is fundamentally a growth company, with three amazing, iconic brands that we believe have a very long runway for growth - both at home and around the world," CEO Jose Cil said in a statement.

Last month, the company posted first-quarter earnings of 55 cents a share, missing estimates for 58 cents a share. Net sales totaled $1.27 billion, narrowly beating Wall Street's forecast.

Restaurant Brands International wasn't active in premarket trading. It closed up Tuesday nearly 1% to $66.37 a share.