DALLAS — Net income at Brinker International, Inc. in the year ended June 24 totaled $79,166,000, equal to 78c per share on the common stock, up 53% from $51,722,000, or 50c per share, in fiscal 2008. For the fourth quarter ended June 24, net income was $42,146,000, or 41c per share, which compared with a loss of $1,540,000 in the same period a year ago.
Net sales for the full year were $3,620,580,000, down 15% from $4,235,223,000. Revenues fell 23% during the fourth quarter, as Brinker experienced a 9% decrease in comparable restaurant sales across all brands. Sales also were affected adversely by the sale of 198 restaurants during the past year, including 189 of which were Macaroni Grill, which Brinker sold in December.
Looking ahead, Brinker said it expects comparable restaurant sales to decline 2% to 4% in fiscal 2010, and earnings per share to be down 10% to 20% compared with fiscal 2009.