“And we now expect the company's interest expense to increase by approximately 11% for the full year.”

In context

“to the P&L, adjusted earnings per share was $3.23 for the quarter, an increase compared to the prior year of about 1% in constant currencies. Despite the pressured consumer spending environment, we've discussed this morning, top-line results generated over $3.8 billion in restaurant margin for the quarter. And our year-to-date adjusted operating margin of nearly 47%, highlights the durability of our business model. Results for the quarter reflected lower G&A spend, primarily due to lower incentive-based costs and continued prioritization around current year run the business spend. We continue to invest in our strategic transformation efforts, focused on forward-looking investments that will drive long-term growth and efficiency. As expected, results also reflected higher interest expense. And we now expect the company's interest expense to increase by approximately 11% for the full year. And our adjusted effective tax rate for the quarter was about 21%. With respect to the remainder of the year, we are reaffirming the other aspects of our financial outlook for 2024 under the assumption that the public health situation that Chris spoke to upfront will not have a material impact to our business. And finally, in September, our Board of Directors approved a 6% dividend increase to the equivalent of $7.08 per share annually. This marked the 48th consecutive dividend increase, reinforcing our continued confidence in the Accelerating the Arches growth strategy and our ability to continue to drive long-term profitable growth for all stakeholders. We remain consistent in our commitment to our capital allocation priorities: first, to invest in opportunities to grow the business and”