SONC Sonic Corp. (delisted)

Sonic Corp.'s second-quarter profit rose 41% on continued strong sales at the drive-in fast-food chain.

Shares, up 1.5% over the past 12 months, rose 3.5% in after-hours trading to $33.70 as results beat Wall Street's consensus and the company raised its earnings outlook.

Sonic said strength in core menu items, along with limited-time offers, drive results in the quarter and helped the chain gain market share.

The company now expects earnings, excluding one-time items, to increase 20% to 25% for the fiscal year ending in August, up from 16% to 20%. Sonic said it expects same-store sales to climb between 4% and 6%, up from a previous forecast of 2% to 4%.

For the period ended Feb. 29, Sonic reported a profit of $10.8 million, or 22 cents a share, up from $7.7 million, or 14 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding items, earnings rose to 18 cents a share from 13 cents a year earlier.

Revenue rose 5.5% to $133.2 million.

Analysts had projected earnings of 16 cents a share on $128 million in revenue.

Sales at restaurants open for at least 15 months rose 6.5% for the period, compared with 11.5% in the year-ago period.

The company had 8.5% fewer shares outstanding in the latest period from a year earlier. Sonic has said it plans to buy back $126 million worth of stock this fiscal year.

The restaurant chain started in 1953 in Shawnee, Okla., as a hamburger and root beer stand. It revolutionized the ordering process by installing curbside speakers that allowed customers to place orders without leaving their cars, spawning the slogan: "Service at the Speed of Sound." The company changed its name from Top Hat to Sonic Drive-In in 1959.

Now based in Oklahoma City, Sonic has more than 3,500 restaurants styled after '50s drive-ins, including some carhops who deliver orders on roller skates.

Write to Ezequiel Minaya at ezequiel.minaya@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 29, 2016 17:25 ET (21:25 GMT)

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