Hurricanes Hit Chuy's Hard

Restaurants have dealt with difficult conditions for some time, and even fast-growing concepts like Tex-Mex specialist Chuy's Holdings (NASDAQ: CHUY) haven't been immune from sales pressure in the face of tougher competition and changes in behavior among patrons. As if falling comparable-restaurant sales for three quarters in a row hadn't already been enough for the Tex-Mex chain, Chuy's also had to deal with the impact of Hurricane Harvey in its home state of Texas and Hurricane Irma in Florida and surrounding areas.

Coming into Thursday's third-quarter financial report, Chuy's investors already expected a drop in profits but hoped that solid revenue growth would signal better times ahead. Chuy's wasn't able to live up to even those somewhat toned-down expectations, but the restaurant chain has made some strategic shifts that it hopes will better reflect its best opportunities. Let's take a closer look at Chuy's Holdings to see whether it's on the right track.

Image source: Chuy's Holdings.

Continue reading

Source: Fool.com