Sandwich chain Cosi blamed the Pope for disappointing sales in September

Sandwich chain Cosi blamed the Pope for disappointing sales in September.

On Wednesday, the company reported that comparable-store sales — which include locations open for at least 15 months — were down 3.6% during September.

In its announcement, the company said, "Business interruptions resulting from the Pope’s visit on September 22–26, 2015 negatively impacted 30% of our Company-owned restaurants. The estimated impact to the 4 Weeks Ended September 28, 2015, and the 13 Weeks Ended September 28, 2015, on comparable restaurant sales of Company-owned locations has been estimated to be -0.9% and -0.3%, respectively."

pope francis

(REUTERS/Alessandro Bianchi )
Pope Francis reacts as he leads a Wednesday general audience in Saint Peter's square at the Vatican January 15, 2014.

Franchised locations saw sales decline 1.7% during September while company-owned locations saw sales decline by 4.5%.

Overall, the third quarter saw sales decline with system-wide same-store sales falling 0.3% in the 13 weeks ending September 28.

Cosi has about 110 locations which operate in 15 states, Washington, D.C., Costa Rica, and the UAE.

The company has a market cap of around $50 million and in afternoon trading on Wednesday, the stock was down 16% to around $0.90 per share.

(Via Bespoke Investment Group)

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