Brinker International, home of Chili’s Grill & Bar and Maggiano’s Little Italy, has reported $1.063 billion in company sales for the second quarter, up from last year’s $1.009 billion.

Comparable restaurant sales rose 5.2 per cent, thanks to the increases of 5 per cent for Chili’s and 6.7 per cent for Maggiano’s. The company attributed the results to effective marketing and pricing strategies. 

Operating income margin increased to 5.8 per cent and restaurant operating margin (non-GAAP) jumped to 13.1 per cent for the quarter.

“Our second quarter marked another quarter of year-over-year growth with continued margin improvement, driven by our strategy to simplify operations, improve our food, service, and atmosphere, and deploy an effective marketing plan,” said Kevin Hochman, CEO and president of Brinker International. 

“We’re pleased with our progress, which has allowed us to improve our traffic trends and now outpace the industry.”

The firm expects total revenues to be in the range of $4.3 billion to $4.35 billion for FY24.

Founded in 1975 in Dallas, Texas, Brinker owns, operates or franchises more than 1600 restaurants in the US and 29 other countries.