Restaurant Brands International Inc. Q4 2025 Earnings Call Summary

Delivered 8.3% organic adjusted operating income growth, marking the third consecutive year of roughly 8% growth despite a challenging consumer backdrop.

Tim Hortons Canada outperformed the broader industry by nearly two points, driven by record cold beverage mix and improved speed of service across all dayparts.

International segment achieved double-digit system-wide sales growth, supported by the transition of Burger King China to a new local partner and scaling Popeyes into a $2,000,000,000 run-rate business.

Burger King US outperformed the burger QSR industry in nine of the last 12 quarters, attributed to the ‘Reclaim the Flame’ initiative and successful family-oriented marketing like the SpongeBob activation.

Management acknowledged a performance gap at Popeyes US, citing a need to return to operational basics and refocus on core products like bone-in chicken and tenders.

Strategic simplification of the portfolio continued with the acquisition of Burger King China equity and the acceleration of Burger King US refranchising efforts ahead of the original schedule.

Committed to a fourth consecutive year of 8% organic adjusted operating income growth, supported by a return to 3% plus system-wide same-store sales.

Expects net restaurant growth to reaccelerate in 2026 as Burger King China moves past its portfolio cleanup and transitions to a growth-focused joint venture.

Anticipates Burger King US franchisee profitability will expand as cyclical beef cost pressures, which rose over 20% in 2025, begin to normalize in the second half of 2026.

Plans to scale Tim Hortons’ digital engagement through a new loyalty partnership with Canadian Tire to drive adoption beyond the current 33% sales penetration.

Guidance assumes a mid-3% SOFR rate impacting approximately 15% of debt, with adjusted net interest expense expected to remain flat year-over-year.

Burger King China was reported as discontinued operations in 2025; royalties will phase back into the International P&L in 2026 at a rate initially below the standard 5%.

The pace of Burger King modern image remodels is being influenced by the current high-cost environment, potentially extending the timeline to reach the 85% modern image target.

A large Popeyes franchisee filing for bankruptcy was characterized as an isolated event not representative of the broader system’s healthy leverage levels.

Tim Hortons’ franchisee economics faced headwinds from tariffs and increased commodity costs for coffee, though average four-wall EBITDA remained resilient at C$295,000.