RBA

** Shares of Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS, which operates Burger King restaurants in India, rise 2.65% to 65.37 rupees

** Stock set to snap three sessions of losses

** Inspira Global to buy a controlling stake in the firm

** The Indian business group will also acquire Everstone's 11.26% stake in RESR, taking its total stake to about 35%

** Inspira, which operates brands such as Chinese Wok and Big Bowl, will pay 70 rupees/share, a premium of about 10% to Tuesday's closing price - RESR

** Reuters reported on Monday that RESR was set to bring in a new strategic investor, with Everstone also exiting

** Shares closed 1.3% down on Monday

** Analysts have a "buy" rating on avg; median PT is 83.50 rupees - data compiled by LSEG

** RESR up ~3% so far in January

(Reporting by Urvi Dugar in Bengaluru)

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Converts figures in paragraph 3 to billions of rupees, from crores of rupees

Jan 20 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS said on Tuesday that Inspira Global will acquire a controlling stake in the Burger King India and Indonesia operator for around 4.60 billion rupees ($50.54 million).

Inspira will buy the entire shareholding of 11.26% in Restaurant Brands Asia (RBA) from QSR Asia, the investment vehicle owned by Everstone.

In addition, Inspira plans to invest about 9 billion rupees through a preferential allotment of shares and another 6 billion rupees through warrants, RBA said in a statement.

These actions will trigger an open offer to RBA's public shareholders, it added.

RBA has a market capitalisation of $408.4 million in Mumbai, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Reuters reported on Monday that RBA was set to bring in a new strategic investor, with the family office of the founders of India's Ajanta Pharma expected to participate, potentially injecting up to 8 billion Indian rupees ($88 million) in the company.

($1 = 91.0260 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Fabiola Arámburo in Mexico City; Editing by Alan Barona)

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By Aditya Kalra, Yantoultra Ngui and Vibhuti Sharma

NEW DELHI/SINGAPORE, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Private equity firm Everstone will sell its entire 11.26% stake in Burger King's India and Indonesia franchisee Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS, as part of a deal to be announced on Tuesday, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Everstone Capital's stake, through its investment vehicle QSR Asia Pte Ltd, is valued at $57 million currently, according to Refinitiv data. Restaurant Brands Asia has a market capitalisation of $437 million in Mumbai.

Under the deal, Restaurant Brands Asia will get a new strategic investor, said the two sources, who declined to be named as the matter is confidential.

Everstone and Restaurant Brands Asia did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.

The family office of the founders of India's Ajanta Pharma, which also runs other restaurant businesses, is set to be the strategic investor in the deal, and could inject up to 8 billion Indian rupees ($88 million) in the company, according to one of the sources.

Representatives of the family office did not respond to a request for comment.

It was not immediately clear what stake Ajanta would take in the company, but the source added it was considering taking up a majority stake in due course as other shareholders sell out.

Restaurant Brands Asia told Indian stock exchanges last week that it planned to hold a board meeting on Tuesday to "consider and evaluate raising of funds". It did not elaborate.

(Reporting by Aditya Kalra in New Delhi and Yantoultra Ngui in Singapore; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

((Email: [email protected]; X: @adityakalra;))

Jan 15 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS:

• RESTAURANT BRANDS ASIA LTD - BOARD TO CONSIDER FUND RAISING THROUGH SECURITIES ISSUANCE

Source text: ID:nBSE455Kx7

Further company coverage: RESR.NS

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Oct 30 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS:

• Q2 CONSOL NET LOSS 586 MILLION RUPEES

• Q2 CONSOL REVENUE FROM OPERATIONS 7.03 BILLION RUPEES

Source text: [ID:]

Further company coverage: RESR.NS

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** Shares of Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS rise as much as 4.2% to 84.8 rupees
** Indian Burger King operator reported a narrower Q1 loss of 419.4 mln rupees ($4.8 mln) as its discounted menu items continued to draw in budget-conscious diners
** Centrum Broking believes RESR showcased strong performance despite subdued consumer spends and rising competition, and that further cost-reduction initiatives along with recovery in dine-in help to boost the business
** Stock on track to snap 2 days of losses

** Analysts' mean rating on stock is "buy"; median PT is 92.5 rupees - data compiled by LSEG
** RESR last up 3.8%, cutting YTD losses to 4.1%

($1 = 87.3550 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Meenakshi Maidas in Bengaluru)

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Adds details throughout

July 31 (Reuters) - Indian Burger King operator Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS reported a narrower first-quarter loss on Thursday, as its discounted menu items continued to draw in budget-conscious diners.

The company reported a net loss of 419.4 million rupees ($4.79 million) for the three months ended June 30, compared to a 493.6 million rupee loss a year earlier.

Fast food chains in India have been grappling with the double whammy of stiff competition from local rivals and muted demand from urban consumers due to high living costs.

To lure in the price-conscious diner, Burger King extended its value deals in the quarter, offering two vegetarian burgers for 79 rupees and two chicken burgers for 99 rupees.

It has also been offering a range of 'Korean' flavored items to cash in on a growing fanbase for Korean dramas and music.

As a result, revenue from its India restaurants grew 12.6%.

Same-store sales, which refer to sales from stores open for at least 12 months, grew 2.6% in India, led by a growth in dine-in traffic.

Rival Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS, which operates the McDonald's restaurants in India, reported same store sales growth of 0.5% in the first quarter.

Overall revenue from operations for Restaurant Brands Asia grew 7.9% to 6.98 billion rupees, as a decline in sales in Indonesia - where it operates 139 restaurants - partly offset the growth in India.

Its India store count grew to 519 stores sequentially, with the company adding six stores in the quarter.

Westlife missed quarterly profit estimates and KFC operator Sapphire Food SAPI.NS swung to a loss in the first quarter due to higher costs.

($1 = 87.5800 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ananta Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair and Janane Venkatraman)

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May 19 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS, the India franchisee of Burger King, reported a narrower fourth-quarter loss on Monday, as its affordable menu appealed to cost-conscious customers.

The company reported a net loss of 562.8 million rupees ($6.6 million) for the three months ended March 31, compared with a loss of 852.60 million rupees a year earlier.

Indian operators of U.S. chains such as Pizza Hut, KFC, McDonald's MCD.N and Burger King QSR.TO face a double blow, as they grapple not only with stiff competition from local rivals but also shrinking consumer spending due to high living costs and slow wage growth.

To counter this, they have relied on cheaper menu options to draw in diners.

In the last quarter, Restaurant Brands Asia introduced deals such as a bundle of two vegetarian burgers at 79 rupees and two chicken burgers at 99 rupees.

Such efforts helped its overall revenue climb nearly 6% to 6.33 billion rupees. Same-store sales at Burger King restaurants across India increased 5.1%, led by a growth in dine-in traffic.

Cheaper menu items also helped McDonald's franchisee Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS double its profit last quarter, although KFC and Pizza Hut franchisee Sapphire Food India SAPI.NS flagged a longer road to recovery, pressured by competition from delivery-focused Domino's, operated by Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS.

Restaurant Brands Asia, however, has slowed its new store openings. It added just three new stores last quarter, out of a total of 58 for the April-March fiscal year.

It continues to focus on keeping diners through such efforts as last month's limited-time "Korean Spicy Fest" menu, which included burgers, chicken wings and fries, to cash in on the buzz around K-culture.

($1 = 85.3820 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Shivani Tanna in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)

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By Shivani Tanna and Praveen Paramasivam

May 5 (Reuters) - India's Jubilant FoodWorks' JUBI.NS strong sales growth for the March quarter is set to outpace rivals whose franchisees are expected to report muted growth despite value-focused promotions, several analysts said.

Operators of U.S. chains KFC YUM.N, McDonald's MCD.N and Burger King QSR.TO are likely to report a decline to mid-single-digit growth in same-store sales, as inflation-hit consumers cut back and local competition intensifies, according to six brokerages.

Jubilant, however, has already flagged a 12.1% increase in like-for-like sales in India in its quarterly update, which analysts say has benefited from its focus on online sales, discounts on third-party platforms, and a waiver of delivery fees on app orders.

Other franchisees have not issued sales updates. Sapphire kicks off earnings for the sector on Wednesday.

"Competitive intensity is growing in fried chicken and burger and the larger existing players like KFC and McDonald's don't have anything different to offer versus rivals," said Karan Taurani, an analyst at Elara Securities.

"Jubilant is performing the best of the lot," Taurani said, adding that its investments into 20-minute in-house delivery and app-led orders are helping reduce its reliance on third-party platforms, which rivals are heavily dependent on.

India's fast-food sector is cooling as inflation-hit consumers cut back, with franchisees relying on discounts to stay competitive in a crowded market.

Unlike Jubilant, which has pushed delivery and app-based offers, KFC and McDonald's franchisees rely more on dine-in traffic and face growing pressure from local cafes and restaurants, analysts said.

Jubilant reported a 34% jump in consolidated revenue to 21.07 billion rupees ($250.05 million) for the March quarter.

While Jubilant's digital strategy has delivered steady outperformance through the year, analysts expect its profit margins — like those of other operators — to remain under pressure in the March quarter, partly due to rising raw material and marketing costs.

Three brokerages expect Jubilant's core earnings margin — a metric the restaurant operator aims to boost over the next few quarters by tightening its costs — to be unchanged from a year earlier.

However, some analysts see fried chicken as a key long-term growth category, despite the challenge of sameness.

"If you see from a longer-term perspective, the next growth driver is the overall fried chicken category in India, but there would be some pressure for one or two quarters," said Preeyam Tolia of Axis Securities.

($1 = 84.2630 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Shivani Tanna and Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru and Praveen Paramasivam in Chennai; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)

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March 26 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS:

• RESTAURANT BRANDS ASIA LTD - APPROVING CLOSURE OF THE QIP ISSUE

• RESTAURANT BRANDS ASIA LTD - APPROVING ISSUE PRICE OF 60 RUPEES PER SHARE FOR QIP

Source text: [ID:]

Further company coverage: RESR.NS

(([email protected];))

March 24 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS:

• ANNOUNCES OPENING OF QUALIFIED INSTITUTIONS PLACEMENT

• FLOOR PRICE FOR QIP AT 62.32 RUPEES PER SHARE

Source text: ID:nBSE37nGQ9

Further company coverage: RESR.NS

(([email protected];))

** Indian restaurant operator stocks jump between 3% and 10% after slew of demand-boosting measures in union budget

** Zomato ZOMT.NS and Swiggy SWIG.NS soar 6.5% and 7%, respectively

** Both were hit hard by cooling demand over last two months

** Among restaurant operators, Pizza Hut and KFC India franchisee Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS gains the most; Burger King's Indian operator Restaurant Brands Asia's RESR.NS up 3%, rising the least

** Domino's franchisee Jubilant Foodworks JUBI.NS gains 5%, Pizza Hut's other Indian operator Devyani Internatinal adds ~7%; McDonald's franchisee Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS advances 8.8%

** Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman says those earning up to 1.28 mln rupees ($14,791.53)/year won't have to pay any taxes

($1 = 86.5360 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru)

(([email protected]; Mobile: +91 9591011727;))

Jan 29 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS, the India franchisee of Burger King, reported a wider third-quarter loss on Wednesday, weighed by high costs and inflation-hit customers cutting back on dining out.

The company reported a net loss of 504 million rupees ($5.82 million) for the three months ended Dec. 31, from a loss of 361.8 million rupees a year earlier.

Same-store sales at Indian Burger King restaurants slipped 0.5%, with the restaurant operator blaming "flat demand."

Global fast-food chains, including Burger King and McDonald's, have been doubling down on cheaper options over the last few quarters to attract India's price-sensitive customers amid high inflation.

Burger King offered some of the cheapest deals in the industry in the country, including a bundle of two vegetarian burgers at 79 rupees and of two chicken burgers at 99 rupees.

This, along with opening more outlets, propped up the company's revenue by 5.8% to 6.39 billion rupees.

Its total store count in India stood at 510, up 69 from last year and 46 from the previous quarter.

However, the company was also affected by high prices of ingredients, which led to an 8.5% increase in total expenses to 7.03 billion rupees.

Cafe chain Tata Starbucks and pizza group Papa John's International PZZA.O, meanwhile, have said they are rethinking their India plans amid subdued consumer sentiment.

Earlier in the day, Restaurant Brands Asia's rival Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS, the operator of McDonald's MCD.N in India, reported a 59% drop in quarterly profit.

Restaurant Brands International QSR.TO, which has Burger King restaurants in more than 100 countries, will report quarterly results on Feb. 12, according to its website.

($1 = 86.5340 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Praveen Paramasivam in Chennai and Hritam Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K)

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Dec 20 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS:

• TO RAISE FUNDS UPTO 5 BILLION RUPEES

• TO RAISE FUNDS VIA QIP

Further company coverage: RESR.NS

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Dec 17 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS:

• RESTAURANT BRANDS ASIA LTD - TO CONSIDER PROPOSAL FOR FUND RAISING

Source text: ID:nBSEb9Nljw

Further company coverage: RESR.NS

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** Shares of India's McDonalds's operator Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS rise as much as 5.2% to 837.4 rupees, its highest since Sept. 27

** Goldman Sachs reiterates street high PT of 1,045 rupees, maintains "buy" rating

** Says positive impact of co's menu interventions expected to drive growth in Q3

** Co says confident of delivering positive same-store sales growth in Q3, will be better than peers, during interaction with GS

** Guest count to see decent growth in Q3, aided by soft base in year-ago quarter- GS

** More than 252,000 shares change hands, 2.2x its 30-day avg

** Rivals Domino's operator Jubilant Foodworks JUBI.NS rated "hold", KFC franchisees Devyani International DEVY.NS and Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS rated "buy" and Burger King operator Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS also at "buy"

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru)

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Nov 29 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS:

• RESTAURANT BRANDS ASIA - SAMEER PATEL RESIGNS AS CFO

Further company coverage: RESR.NS

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Adds background, revenue in paragraphs 4-7

Nov 11 (Reuters) - Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS, which operates the Domino's Pizza DPZ.N brand in India, posted a smaller-than-expected fall in second-quarter profit on Monday, as cheaper menu items attracted budget-conscious customers.

Consolidated net profit fell to 640.5 million rupees ($7.59 million) for the quarter ended Sept. 30 from 972 million rupees a year earlier.

Analysts had estimated 635.2 million rupees, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Persistently high inflation has prompted consumers in the world's most populous country to pare back their dine-out spending, forcing fast-food chains to roll out cheaper menu items such as Domino's' four-course meal for 99 rupees ($1.2).

This, as well as its move to open more stores, paid off as Jubilant's revenue from operations rose nearly 43% to 19.55 billion rupees for the September quarter.

The results come in contrast to Jubilant's peers' numbers.

Sapphire Foods India SAPI.NS, which operates Pizza Hut and KFC, posted a surprise loss, while Burger King operator Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS booked a bigger loss. Profit at Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS, which runs McDonald's, slid.

($1 = 84.3550 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Praveen Paramasivam and Ashna Teresa Britto; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)

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Oct 28 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS:

• Q2 CONSOL NET LOSS 601.7 MILLION RUPEES

• Q2 CONSOL REVENUE FROM OPERATIONS 6.32 BILLION RUPEES

Source text: ID:nNSE1SW7jp

Further company coverage: RESR.NS

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Oct 11 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS:

• APPOINTS TARA SUBRAMANIAM AS CHAIRPERSON

Source text for Eikon: ID:nBSE8YsRpm

Further company coverage: RESR.NS

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** Shares of Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS rise as much as 9.2% to 957 rupees, highest since Oct. 6

** Goldman Sachs upgraded stock to 'buy' with a street high PT of 1,075 rupees, as per a Moneycontrol report

** Goldman Sachs expects recovery potential from new product launches like the McCrispy platform, report adds

** More than 3.8 mln shares change hands, 30x its 30-day avg

** Twenty analysts covering the stock on avg have a 'hold' rating; median PT is 870.5 rupees - LSEG data

** Stock up ~14% so far this month vs a ~7% rise in Domino's restaurant operator Jubilant Foodworks JUBI.NS and a 3% rise in Burger King India franchisee Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru)

(([email protected] ; ( +91 8078332441))

Sept 26 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS:

• ENTERED INTO LOAN AGREEMENT WITH UNIT PT SARI BURGER INDONESIA

• DEAL TO GRANT LOAN FOR 248.7 MILLION RUPEES

Source text for Eikon: ID:nNSE1V8dnt

Further company coverage: RESR.NS

(([email protected];))

** Shares of Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS up 8.3% to 648.6 rupees, their highest since Feb. 2022

** The Domino's India franchisee reported near two-fold jump in Q1 profit on Friday

** Stock eyes busiest trading session since November 2022, volumes 6x the 30-day avg

** Analysts' avg rating on stock is "Hold", in line with rating on peer Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS while Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS, Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS are rated "Buy", per LSEG data

** Median PT on JUBI is 567 rupees - a 5.3% discount on last close

** Stock up 15% YTD vs 13% gains in SAPI, 4% fall in RESR and ~3% loss in WEST

(Reporting by Manvi Pant in Bengaluru)

(([email protected]; +918447554364;))

July 29 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS:

• RESTAURANT BRANDS ASIA Q1 CONSOL NET LOSS 493.6 MILLION RUPEES

• RESTAURANT BRANDS ASIA Q1 CONSOL REVENUE FROM OPERATIONS 6.47 BILLION RUPEES

Source text for Eikon: [ID:]

Further company coverage: RESR.NS

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** Shares of Westlife Foodworld Ltd WEST.NS fall 2.6% to 835.35 rupees

** WEST reports 89% drop in Q1 profit, hurt by higher expenses and mostly unchanged rev

** Frail demand leads to fourth-straight quarterly profit drop for West and South India McDonald's MCD.N restaurants operator

** WEST and Domino's restaurant operator Jubilant Foodworks JUBI.NS rated "hold" on avg vs "buy" for Burger King India franchisee Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS - LSEG data

** Stock trims YTD gains to 3.4% but still leads pack

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru)

(([email protected]; Mobile: +91 9591011727;))

** Shares of Burger King's India operator, Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS, rise as much as 4.6% to 113.5 rupees

** Around 4.6 mln shares (around 0.92% stake) bought by HDFC Mutual Fund in a bulk deal on July 4 - exchange data

** Shares bought at 110.46 rupees per share, 1.8% more than last close price

** Stock on track to gain for 3rd straight day

** More than 13 mln shares traded as of 12:43 p.m. IST, 4.6x their 30-day avg

** Mean rating of 11 brokerages rating the stock is "buy"; their median PT is 125 rupees - LSEG data

** RESR gained 13.9% so far this week, adding to YTD gains of ~1.2%

(Reporting by Meenakshi Maidas in Bengaluru)

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May 16 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia Ltd RESR.NS:

• SEES 700 RESTAURANTS COUNT IN INDIA BY FY27

• SEES ABOUT 69% GROSS PROFIT IN INDIA BY FY27

• IN INDONESIA, SEES CASH BREAKEVEN IN FY25

Further company coverage: RESR.NS

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By Dhwani Pandya and Praveen Paramasivam

MUMBAI, Feb 27 (Reuters) - India's western state of Maharashtra will inspect outlets of global fast-food brands to check if they use cheese alternatives in products wrongly promoted as containing real cheese, widening scrutiny beyond a crackdown on McDonald's, a top official said.

The checks threaten to cause a headache for global brands after recent inflationary pressure hit consumption of burgers and pizzas that are pricey for many Indian consumers, prompting firms to launch of discounted offerings.

McDonald's MCD.N biggest India franchisee, Westlife Foodworld, WEST.NS has been defending its use of "real cheese" after media reported that state authorities last year found some products made use of so-called cheese analogues of vegetable oil, rather than real cheese.

The McDonald's franchisee disagreed with the findings, but in December it dropped the word "cheese" from the names of many burgers and nuggets it sells statewide, letters seen by Reuters show.

It renamed a "corn and cheese burger" as an "American vegetarian burger", for example.

Inspectors of the state's Food and Drug Administration will now visit all McDonald's outlets, as well as those of other major brands, to check for similar violations of display and labelling rules, its chief, Abhimanyu Kale, told Reuters.

"We are planning to check all outlets of McDonald's," he said. "We will also take action on other well-known and frequently visited global fast-food chain outlets," he added, but declined to identify the brands being targeted.

Another senior state government official, who sought anonymity, said inspectors would visit Indian franchisee outlets of brands such as Domino's DPZ.N, Pizza Hut, Burger King and KFC.

Indian state authorities have the power to suspend the licences of restaurants found to have infringed food and safety regulations in a way that misleads consumers.

Westlife, which runs McDonald's in west and south India, will welcome any inspections and maintains the "highest standards", its managing director, Saurabh Kalra, said.

Domino's franchisee Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS, Burger King operator Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS and Devyani International DEVY.NS, which operates Yum Brands' YUM.N Pizza Hut and KFC in India, did not respond to Reuters queries.

Another Pizza Hut operator, India's Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS, declined comment.

India's western state of Maharashtra is its second most populous. Home to the financial capital Mumbai and many urban cities, it is a key market for global fast-food brands.

In the McDonald's case, state food inspectors suspended the licence of one outlet east of Mumbai in November for allegedly using analogues in products promoted as containing cheese.

The suspension was later revoked on appeal by Westlife, the McDonald's franchisee.

The company reassured many consumers online who voiced concerns about its cheese offerings, saying on social network X that it uses "globally approved gold-standard suppliers".

"Our cheese is made from real milk only and we do not use any substitutes or cheese analogues," it said on Monday.

(Editing by Aditya Kalra and Clarence Fernandez)

(([email protected]; @adityakalra;))

** Shares of Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS up 3.8% after the Indian operator of Burger King and Popeyes chains reports narrower Q3 loss

** Prabhudas Lilladher, Antique Stock Broking raise PT on co, with Prabhudas' new PT of 151 rupees being a Street high - LSEG

** Prabhudas sees positive outlook in India ops; on improved store traffic, strong growth in smaller towns

** Antique expects strong performance from co, backed by margin expansion on menu innovation, expansion of chains and improvement in Indonesia business

** Avg rating of 10 analysts, including Prabhudas and Antique, is an equivalent of 'buy' - LSEG

** The median PT is now 130 rupees, up from 126 rupees as of Dec. 30

(Reporting by Manvi Pant in Bengaluru)

(([email protected]; +918447554364;))

BENGALURU, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS, which operates Burger King and Popeyes chains in India and Indonesia, reported a narrower third-quarter loss on Monday, boosted by strong sales in the festive season.

The company's consolidated net loss narrowed to 361.8 million rupees ($4.4 million) in the three months ended Dec. 31, from 504.2 million rupees a year earlier.

Nonetheless, this is the company's seventeenth consecutive quarterly loss, hurt this time around by a nearly 10% jump in total expenses.

The company, which runs quick service chains owned by Restaurant Brands International QSR.TO, said prices of ingredients including chicken, cheese, tomatoes and onions rose 12.6%.

However, revenue increased about 15% during the quarter, helped by consumers stepping out during the Diwali festival in India and the Christmas holiday period more broadly.

Sales also got a boost in India, which accounts for about 74% of total sales, as some vegetarian-centric religious periods fell in September this year, instead of October.

During the October-December quarter, Restaurant Brands Asia's same-store sales growth at Indian Burger King restaurants slowed to 2.6% from 28% in the year-ago quarter.

Rival fast food chain operators such as KFC-operator Devyani International DEVY.NS, Pizza Hut-operator Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS, McDonald's-operator Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS and Domino's India-franchisee Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS are yet to report results.

Restaurant Brands Asia's shares closed down at 2.9% ahead of results on Monday.

($1 = 83.1300 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Savio D'Souza)

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