What is Inspire Brands stock price, and are they publicly traded? Unfortunately, like many corporate conglomerates, Inspire Brands is a privately owned equity company that falls under the management of Roark Capital Group. That means if you want to buy shares of your favorite restaurant chain that’s run by Inspire Brands, for the time being you’re out of luck. One thing to note, fans of Buffalo Wild Wings were able to buy stock in the popular sports bar before ARG bought them out; taking the stock off the public markets.
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Inspire Brands Introduction (No Stock Symbol)
If you didn’t already know, they’re a multi-brand restaurant company. Which means they have many (successful!) brands under their umbrella. They are currently a privately held company owned by Roark Capital Group and don’t have a stock symbol to trade.
Have you ever wondered why different restaurant chains may always be located near each other? Or sometimes even offer similar specialties or crossover products? It’s because a majority of restaurant chains are actually owned by a very small number of restaurant conglomerates. Which are basically larger umbrella corporations that manage these brands from a distance. Inspire Brands is one of these companies. In fact, the brands it owns will surely resonate with the fast-food fan in all of us! For example, Subway is a company we all know.
When Was Inspired Brands Founded?
Inspire Brands was founded in 2018 out of Sandy Springs, Georgia. As a result, it’s a relatively new company in terms of operations. In fact, it’s quite impressive how many brands they’ve managed to acquire.
They became established when Arby’s Restaurant Group or ARG merged with Buffalo Wild Wings to form the new entity known as Inspire Brands.
While much of the corporate structure and capital was rolled over from the Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inspire Brands as it exists today is seen as an entirely separate corporation.
What Brands Does Inspire Own?
So which restaurant chains does Inspire Brands own? Obviously the two brands mentioned previously in Arby’s and Buffalo Wild Wings.
But there are several others that we’re sure you’ve been to in the past. Let’s start with the Buffalo Wild Wings owned Rusty Taco chain; which operates 33 locations across the United States.
On top of this we have Jimmy John’s, Baskin Robbins, and two of the biggest brands that they recently acquired: Sonic Drive-in and Dunkin’ Donuts.
In all, Inspire Brands has over 30,000 locations across all of its brands. These are located in dozens of countries across several continents around the world.
What Else Does Roark Capital Group Own?
You’ll be surprised at how many of your favorite restaurant chains fall under Roark’s umbrella. As the equity group remains one of America’s largest investors in the restaurant industry.
Like Inspire, Roark is also based out of Georgia with its headquarters in Atlanta. The equity firm has an AUM or assets under management value of $19 billion.
And is well-known for their focus on the middle-market company sector with multi-location franchisees. Here are a few of the other brands that Roark owns.
The Cheesecake Factory
One of the more well-known chain restaurants in America, the Cheesecake Factory is known for its fun family atmosphere and sprawling menus.
The Cheesecake Factory can often be found attached to retail properties such as malls or outlet malls, and currently operates 211 locations across the United States.
If you like the Cheesecake Factory and think it’s worth an investment, you can find it on the NASDAQ exchange trading under the ticker symbol (NASDAQ:CAKE).
CKE Restaurants
Another restaurant group similar to Inspire, CKE owns such popular restaurant chains as Carl’s Jr., Red Burrito, and Green Burrito.
Across all of CKE’s brands, the company owns and operates over 3800 locations across the United States. As well as in over 40 different countries around the world.
Focus Brands
Focus Brands owns such restaurant chains as Cinnabon, Carvel, Moe’s Southwest Grill, Auntie Anne’s, Jamba Juice, and Schlotzsky’s. They were established in 2001.
And just like Inspire Brands, operates out of Sandy Springs, Georgia. That makes the small city with a population just under 100,000 people, a national hub for restaurant conglomerates.
Focus Brands operates well over 5,000 locations across its various brands around the world.
Driven Brands
This automotive conglomerate shows that Roark is diversified across several different industries. And isn’t just a restaurant investor.
Driven Brands owns many of the vehicle maintenance ebrands you know. Including CARSTAR, Maaco, Meineke, Xpress Lube, and Pro Oil Change amongst others.
How Many Locations Does Inspire Brands Have?
You may not be able to trade Inspire Brands right now, but they have a lot of locations. As of 2019 they had 31,600 to be precise. That’s a lot. And could’ve made for a great investment if they were a publicly traded company.
Dunkin’ Donuts
Recently, the top headline for Inspire Brands was their acquisition of the much-loved coffee and donut chain Dunkin’ Donuts. The deal was worth $8.8 billion.
Which valued the company at about $106.50 per share at the time of the agreement. Dunkin’ Donuts’ stock surged as investors attempted to get into the stock before shares were ultimately paid out by Inspire Brands.
The $8.8 billion price tag also included Baskin Robbins’ ice cream chain. Which operates over 5000 locations worldwide and is actually very popular in international markets like Asia. The sticker price paid by Inspire Brands was also nearly triple the price they paid for Buffalo Wild Wings and nearly quadruple the price they paid for Sonic Drive-in in 2018.
Was the Steep Price Worth It?
Given Inspire Brands desire to get into the breakfast sector of fast food chains, Dunkin’ Donuts was probably one of the best targets to acquire.
Other giants in the space are already publicly traded companies like McDonalds (NYSE:MCD) or Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) and definitely would be much too big of an option for a buyout or takeover.
Dunkin’ Donuts has its niche in America. Especially in the Northeast where the brand was established. Since its inception in 2004, Dunkin’ has built nearly 13,000 locations across 42 different countries. Which is incredible considering coffee and donuts are such a traditionally American meal.
How Do I Invest in the Coffee and Breakfast Industry?
If you really enjoy your breakfast and feel motivated to invest some of your money into the industry there are some stocks that you can buy. We already mentioned McDonalds and Starbucks as two options. However, you’re just a buy and hold investor who likes to bank dividends, these two stocks are unlikely to have much more growth in the near future.
Restaurant Brands Inc. (NYSE:QSR)
A restaurant chain conglomerate that is actually publicly traded, Restaurant Brands Inc. gained notoriety amongst investors when Warren Buffet took a large position with the company.
Although Buffet has since sold his stake, QSR is still a nice steady dividend provider that investors can count on for a solid 2.92% dividend yield.
QSR owns such companies as Burger King, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen Inc., and Canadian breakfast competitor Tim Hortons.
Dine Brands Global Inc. (NYSE:DIN)
Do you like pancakes? Well this may be the stock for you. Dine Brands is a fancy way of saying you’re investing in their biggest holding; IHOP.
In fact, Dine also owns Applebee’s which is a national chain of family dining restaurants; which probably serves breakfast of some type as well.
Is it a great investment? It’s fine, and with a nice 4.67% yield there are worse places to park your money.
J.M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM)
That’s right! The Smuckers jam you grew up loving has a stock you can own. And it’s a pretty well-performing one too.
It pays a 3.14% dividend yield and owns a ton of breakfast and baking foods as well as a sizable pet food business as well.
Inspire Brands Stock Final Thoughts
Inspire Brands is one of the largest restaurant chain conglomerates in America. And owns several of the most popular brands in the industry.
Its recent takeover of Dunkin’ Donuts provides it with a firm foothold in the breakfast and fast coffee sector that’s so valuable to have. Is it a good investment?
The issue right now is with the uncertainty of what going into work will actually look like in 2021 and the future. Many companies have already moved to a permanent work from home situation.
Which means offices may soon be a thing of the past. That’ll seriously cut into the drive-thru and take-out breakfast business that companies like Dunkin’ Donuts thrive on.
And while there will always be a demand for coffee and baked goods on the go, the morning rush was one of the most lucrative groups of customers.
Inspire Brands isn’t a publicly traded company as of now. I’d wager that it doesn’t have any significant interest in going public anytime soon given its recent privatization of Dunkin’ Donuts and Buffalo Wild Wings. A little word to the wise, avoid the choppy markets and stick with the name brands that are tried and true. Look at our SP500 Stocks list for more trading ideas.
