Even fried chicken sales are down because of the oil crash
.jp2)
During the second-quarter earnings season, several companies that aren't in the energy sector continued to mention declines in their businesses in oil-producing areas.
Harley Davidson saw a jump in the number of people in oil-heavy regions who were defaulting on loan payments. Caesars Entertainment said a lot of weakness was focused around the southeastern US.
And like The Cheesecake Factory, Popeyes' demonstrates that it's not only spending on big-ticket items that has fallen.
There was a little bit of weakness in Louisiana and Texas, according to Cheryl Bachelder, Popeyes' CEO, during the earnings call.
"We have been monitoring very closely whether or not the change in oil prices will be affecting our stores that are in those regions, and only recently in the last six, nine months have there been a slight decline," said William Matt, Popeyes' chief financial officer.
The oil downturn, which started in June 2014, has eroded consumer confidence and employment in energy-rich regions. And that's why several CEOs have mentioned this impact during their earnings calls.
For the second quarter, Popeyes' on Tuesday reported a 4% increase in revenue to $61.7 million, although it was lower than analysts had estimated.
Domestic sales slowed to no growth from an 8% increase a year ago due to competition. International sales accelerated year-on-year.