Carrols to buy 30 Burger Kings in North Carolina for $20 million

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Carrols Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: TAST) announced it plans to buy 30 Burger King restaurants in eastern North Carolina, continuing a recent buying spree by the largest Burger King franchisee in the world.

Carrols, which is headquartered at 968 James St. in Syracuse, has 581 restaurants as of Sept. 18. It has operated Burger King restaurants since 1976.

Carrols will make the purchase under the same terms and conditions of an existing purchase and sale agreement between the sellers and an unrelated third party, the company said in a news release.

The total purchase price is about $20 million payable in cash at closing, according to Carrols.

After the transaction closes, Carrols anticipates it will market and enter into sale/leaseback transactions for 10 of the acquired properties for total estimated proceeds of $13 million to $14 million.

The addition of these 30 restaurants further expands Carrols’ presence in North Carolina, where it currently operates 134 Burger King restaurants, Daniel Accordino, CEO of Carrols Restaurant Group, said in the release. The acquisition also provides a “stronger foothold” in the eastern part of the Tar Heel State.

“Since raising equity capital earlier this year in a public offering, we have made a series of strategic acquisitions, and to date, completed the purchase of 29 restaurants. The expected closing of this transaction, along with the anticipated completion of our previously announced purchase of 64 restaurants from Heartland Food LLC, will bring our 2014 acquisition activity to over 120 restaurants and our restaurant count to more than 670 by year-end,” said Accordino.

Carrols expects to complete the North Carolina transaction, which is subject to certain customary closing conditions, in early October.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com