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Fly News Breaks for January 3, 2020
CAKE, JACK, TACO, CMG, PZZA, DPZ
Jan 3, 2020 | 09:24 EDT
BTIG analyst Peter Saleh writes that the overall restaurant industry may experience a steeper decline in 2020 traffic as more U.S. customers stay at home to watch political debates and the summer Olympics as observed four years ago in 2016. The analyst contends however that the trend is positive for the concepts that cater to off-premise dining and are growing their advertising budgets. Saleh sees Buy-rated pizza delivery names Domino's Pizza (DPZ) and Papa John's (PZZA) as key beneficiaries, naming them "top picks" in his Restaurants 2020 Outlook research note. The analyst also keeps his Top Pick designation for Buy-rated Chipotle (CMG), where he expects another year of sales growth and margin expansion. Separately, Saleh sees outsized labor cost pressure for "California-heavy" operators - where the minimum wage will rise 8.3% - including Del Taco (TACO), Jack in the Box (JACK) and Cheesecake Factory (CAKE), keeping his Neutral rating on those names.