RUTH Ruths Hospitality Group Inc

Item 1A.          RISK FACTORS

In addition to the other information in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, the following risk factors should be considered carefully in evaluating the Company and its business. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that the Company currently deems immaterial may also impair its business operations. If any of these certain risks and uncertainties were to actually occur, the Company’s business, financial condition or results of operations could be materially adversely affected. In such case, the trading price of the Company’s common stock could decline and its investors may lose all or part of their investment. These risks and uncertainties include the following:

Risks Related to Our Ability to Operate and Grow Our Business

The COVID-19 outbreak has disrupted and may continue to disrupt our business, which has and could continue to materially affect our operations, financial condition and results of operations for an extended period of time.

The government responses related to COVID-19 across the world and our Company’s responses to the outbreak have disrupted and may continue to disrupt our business and adversely affect our revenue and operating margin and we cannot predict how long the outbreak will ultimately last or what other government responses may occur.

As of December 25, 2022, we were engaged in legal proceedings with three landlords. Subsequent to fiscal year 2022, we resolved two of these outstanding legal proceedings. We have pursued and continue to pursue the remaining outstanding matter vigorously, but there can be no assurance that we will prevail in litigation. 

Additional government regulations or legislation due to COVID-19, in addition to decisions we have made and may make in the future, relating to the compensation of and benefit offerings for our restaurant Team Members could also have an adverse effect on our business. We cannot predict the types of additional government regulations or legislation that may be passed relating to employee compensation due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

We cannot predict the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic or future governmental regulations or legislation that may be passed as a result of ongoing or future COVID-19 outbreaks. The continued impact of COVID-19 and the enactment of additional governmental regulations and restrictions may further adversely impact the global economy, the restaurant industry, and our business specifically, despite prior or future actions taken by us.

A lack of availability of suitable locations for new restaurants, the inability to renew leases at existing restaurants on similar terms and conditions, or a decline in the quality of the locations of our current restaurants may adversely affect our sales and results of operations.

The success of our restaurants depends in large part on their locations. All but one of our Company-owned restaurant premises are leased. If we do not renew leases when the lease terms expire, or if we are unable to renew leases on favorable terms and conditions, our operating results could be negatively impacted. Possible declines in neighborhoods where our restaurants are located or adverse economic conditions in areas surrounding those neighborhoods could also result in reduced sales in those restaurants. Desirable locations for new restaurant openings or for the relocation of existing restaurants may not be available at an acceptable cost when we identify a particular opportunity for a new restaurant or relocation. In addition, construction costs for new locations may fluctuate. The occurrence of one or more of these events could have a significant adverse effect on our sales and results of operations.

Our strategy to open franchisee-owned restaurants subjects us to extensive government regulation, compliance with which might increase our investment costs and restrict our growth.

We are subject to the rules and regulations of the FTC and various international and state laws regulating the offer and sale of franchises. The FTC requires that we furnish to prospective franchisees a franchise disclosure document containing prescribed information and can restrict our ability to sell franchises. A number of states also regulate the sale of franchises and require the obtaining of a permit and/or registration of the franchise disclosure document with state authorities and the delivery of the franchise disclosure document to prospective franchisees. Non-compliance with those laws could result in governmental enforcement actions seeking a civil or criminal penalty, rescission of a franchise, and loss of our ability to offer and sell franchises in a state, or a private lawsuit seeking rescission, damages and legal fees, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

The terms of our senior credit agreement may restrict our ability to operate our business and to pursue our business strategies.

Our senior credit agreement contains, and any agreements governing future indebtedness would likely contain, a number of restrictive covenants that impose significant operating and financial restrictions on us. Our senior credit agreement, which was entered into on February 2, 2017 and was amended and restated on October 18, 2021, may limit our ability, among other things, to:

Our ability to engage in these types of transactions is limited even if we believe that a specific transaction would contribute to our future growth or improve our operating results. Our senior credit agreement also requires us to maintain compliance with certain financial ratios. Our ability to comply with these ratios may be affected by events outside of our control. Any non-compliance would result in a default under our senior credit agreement and could result in our lenders declaring our senior debt immediately due and payable, which would have a material adverse effect on our financial position, consolidated results of operations and liquidity. For more information about senior credit agreement, see Item 7, Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources—Senior Credit Facility, of this Annual Report on the Form 10-K.

We pay interest under our senior credit agreement based on the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”).  At the end of 2021, the ICE Benchmark Administration, the administrator for LIBOR, ceased publishing one-week and two-month U.S. dollar LIBOR and will cease publishing all remaining U.S dollar LIBOR tenors in mid-2023. Concurrently, the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority announced the cessation or loss of representativeness of the U.S dollar LIBOR tenors from those dates. The U.S Federal Reserve, in conjunction with the Alternative Reference Rates Committee, a steering committee comprised of, among other entities, large U.S financial institutions, has recommended replacing U.S. dollar LIBOR with a new index that measures the cost of borrowing cash overnight, backed by U.S Treasury securities (“SOFR”). SOFR is observed and backward-looking, which stands in contrast with LIBOR, which is an estimated forward-looking rate and relies, to some degree, on the expert judgement of submitting panel members. The consequences of these developments with respect to LIBOR cannot be entirely predicted and may result in the level of interest payments on the portion of our indebtedness under our senior credit agreement to be affected, which may adversely affect the amount of our interest payments under such debt. 

In the future, we may depend on external sources of capital, which may not be available.

Currently, we utilize our senior credit agreement to fund a portion of our working capital and other financing requirements. Any non-compliance with any restrictive or financial covenants in our senior credit agreement could result in a default and could result in our lenders declaring our senior debt immediately due and payable, which would have a material adverse effect on our financial position, consolidated results of operations and liquidity.

If we are required to seek other sources of capital, additional capital may or may not be available on favorable terms or at all. Our access to third-party sources of capital depends on a number of factors, including the market’s perception of our current and potential future earnings. Furthermore, additional equity offerings may result in substantial dilution of stockholders’ interests. If we are unable to access sufficient capital or enter into financing arrangements on favorable terms in the future, our financial condition and results of operations may be materially adversely affected.

Food safety and food-borne illness concerns throughout the supply chain may have an adverse effect on our business.

Food safety is a top priority, and we dedicate substantial resources to ensuring that our customers enjoy safe, quality food products. However, food safety risks are common throughout the restaurant industry and cannot be eliminated. Food safety issues could be caused by food suppliers, distributors or franchisees and, as a result, be out of our control. In addition, regardless of the source or cause, any report of food-borne illness such as E. coli, norovirus, hepatitis A, trichinosis, shigella, typhoid fever or salmonella, and other food safety issues including food tampering or contamination, at one of our restaurants could adversely affect the reputation of our brand and have a negative impact on our sales. Even instances of food-borne illness, food tampering or other food contamination occurring solely at restaurants of our competitors could result in negative publicity about the food service industry generally and adversely impact our sales. The occurrence of food-borne illnesses or food safety issues could also adversely affect the price and availability of affected ingredients, resulting in higher costs and lower margins.

If our vendors or distributors do not deliver food and beverages in a timely manner we may experience supply shortages and/or increased food and beverage costs.

Our ability to maintain consistent quality throughout Company-owned restaurants depends in part upon our ability to purchase USDA Prime and Choice grade beef, seafood and other food products in accordance with our rigid specifications. The Company did not experience any major disruption during the fiscal year 2022 and was able to purchase substantially all of the beef used in Company-owned Ruth’s Chris restaurants from two vendors, Sysco Specialty Meat Group (a subsidiary of Sysco) and Stock Yards Packing (a subsidiary of US Foods). Each vendor supplied about half of the Company’s beef requirements.

In addition, we currently have a long-term distribution arrangement with a national food and restaurant supply distributor, DMA, which purchases products for us from various suppliers, and through which each of our Company-owned Ruth’s Chris Steak House restaurants receive a significant portion of their food supplies. Consolidation in our supply chain due to mergers and acquisitions may change the relationships we have with our existing vendors and distributors and/or result in fewer alternative supply sources for purchasing our food supplies, which could result in an increase in prices. If for any reason our vendors or distributors cease doing business with us, we could experience supply shortages in certain Company-owned restaurants and could be required to purchase supplies at higher prices until we are able to secure an alternative supply source. Any delay we experience in replacing vendors or distributors on acceptable terms could increase food costs or, in extreme cases, require us to temporarily remove items from the menu at one or more Company-owned restaurants.

Labor shortages or increases in labor costs could slow our growth or harm our business.

Our success depends in part upon our ability to continue to attract, motivate and retain employees with the qualifications to succeed in our industry and the motivation to apply our core service philosophy, including regional operational managers, restaurant general managers and chefs. If we are unable to continue to recruit and retain sufficiently qualified individuals, our business and growth could be adversely affected. Competition for these employees could require us to pay higher wages, which could result in higher labor costs.

In addition, we have a substantial number of hourly employees who are paid wage rates at or based on the federal or state minimum wage and who rely on tips as a large portion of their income. Governmental entities have acted to increase minimum wage rates in several jurisdictions where Company-owned restaurants are located. The federal minimum wage may be increased and there likely will be additional minimum wage increases implemented in other states in which we operate or seek to operate. Likewise, changes to existing tip credit laws (which dictate the amounts an employer is permitted to assume an employee receives in tips when calculating the employee’s hourly wage for minimum wage compliance purposes) continue to be proposed and implemented at both the federal and state government levels. As federal and/or state minimum wage rates increase and allowable tip credits decrease, we may need to increase not only the wage rates of our minimum wage employees but also the wages paid to our employees who are paid above the minimum wage, which will increase our labor costs. Proposals on paid sick leave could also increase our labor costs. None of our employees are represented by a collective bargaining unit. Should some of our employees elect to be represented by a collective bargaining unit, our labor costs may increase due to higher wage rates and/or the implementation of work rules. We may be unable to increase our prices to pass these increased labor costs on to our guests, in which case our margins would be negatively affected.

Regulations affecting the operation of our restaurants could increase operating costs and restrict growth.

Each of our restaurants must obtain licenses from regulatory authorities allowing us to sell liquor, beer and wine, and each restaurant must obtain a food service license from local health authorities. Each restaurant’s liquor license must be renewed annually and may be revoked at any time for cause, including violation by the Company or its employees of any laws and regulations relating to the minimum drinking age, advertising, wholesale purchasing and inventory control.

In certain states, including states where we have a large number of restaurants or where we may open restaurants in the future, the number of liquor licenses available is limited and licenses are traded at market prices. If we are unable to maintain existing licenses, or if we choose to open a restaurant in those states, the cost of a new license could be significant. Obtaining and maintaining licenses is an important component of each of our restaurant’s operations, and the failure to obtain or maintain food and liquor licenses and other required licenses, permits and approvals would materially adversely impact existing restaurants or our growth strategy.

We are also subject to a variety of federal and state labor laws, pertaining to matters such as minimum wage and overtime pay requirements, unemployment tax rates, workers’ compensation rates and citizenship requirements. Government-mandated increases in minimum wages, overtime pay, paid leaves of absence, mandated health benefits, COVID related labor regulations, or increased tax reporting and tax payment requirements for employees who receive gratuities or a reduction in the number of states that allow tips to be credited toward minimum wage requirements could increase our labor costs and reduce our operating margins. In addition, the Federal Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits discrimination based on disability in public accommodations and employment. Although our restaurants are designed to be accessible to the disabled, we could be required to make modifications to our restaurants to provide service to, or make reasonable accommodations for, disabled persons.

We are subject to a variety of federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to the use, storage, discharge, emission and disposal of hazardous materials. There also has been increasing focus by United States and overseas governmental authorities on other environmental matters, such as climate change, the reduction of greenhouse gases and water consumption. This increased focus may lead to new initiatives directed at regulating a yet to be specified array of environmental matters. Legislative, regulatory or other efforts to combat climate change or other environmental concerns could result in future increases in the cost of raw materials, taxes, transportation and utilities, which could decrease our operating profits and necessitate future investments in facilities and equipment.

We rely on information technology in our operations and a failure to maintain a continuous and secure network, free from material failure, interruption, or security breach, could harm our ability to effectively operate our business, damage our reputation and negatively affect our operations and profits.

We rely on information systems across our operations, including for marketing programs, point-of-sale processing systems in our restaurants, online purchases of gift cards and various other processes and transactions. The failure of these systems to operate effectively, delays in transitioning to upgraded or replacement systems, a material network breach in the security of these systems, or any other failure to maintain a continuous and secure network could adversely affect our reputation, negatively affect our results of operations, subject us to litigation or action by regulatory authorities and result in substantial harm to us or an individual. As privacy and information security laws and regulations change and cyber risks evolve, we may incur additional costs to ensure we remain in compliance, to protect guest, employee and Company information. We currently carry insurance coverage to protect ourselves against some of these risks. However, our inability to renew this coverage or to obtain such insurance coverage at reasonable costs also could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We accept electronic payment cards, including credit, debit and gift cards, from our guests for payment in our restaurants and on our websites. We also receive and maintain certain personal information about our customers and employees. Most of our sensitive data, including information related to employees, guests, credit cards, gift cards and financial statements, is stored or processed by third-party vendors. We, and some of our vendors, have experienced breaches but they have not had a material impact on operations or our financial position. If we, or one of our vendors, experienced a material security breach, we could become subject to claims, lawsuits or other proceedings for purportedly fraudulent transactions arising out of the theft of credit or debit card information, theft of gift card information, compromised security and information systems, failure of our employees to comply with applicable laws, the unauthorized acquisition or use of such information by third parties, or other similar claims.

We frequently defend against unauthorized attempts to breach our network. Like other companies, we have in the past experienced, and we expect to continue to experience, cyber-attacks, including phishing, attacks through vulnerabilities in widely deployed third-party software we deploy in the ordinary course of business, and other attempts to breach, or gain unauthorized access to, our systems. We employ both internal and external consultants to conduct auditing and testing for weaknesses in our systems, controls, firewalls and encryption and intend to maintain and upgrade our security technology and operational procedures to prevent such damage, security breaches or other disruptive problems. We continuously monitor data security and evaluate our network for known security breaches. However, because the techniques used to obtain unauthorized access, to disable or degrade service, or to sabotage computer systems change frequently and may be difficult to detect for long periods of time, we may be unable to anticipate these techniques or successfully implement adequate preventive security measures. There can also be no assurance that we would detect a cyber incident or prevent cyberattacks from penetrating our systems. Any such incidents or proceedings could negatively affect our reputation and our results of operations, cause delays in guest service, require significant capital investments to remediate the problem, and could result in the imposition of penalties or cause us to incur significant unplanned losses and expenditures, including those necessary to remediate any damage to persons whose personal information may have been compromised. Furthermore, because of legislative and regulatory rules, we may be required to notify employees or the owners of the credit and debit card information of any data breaches, which could harm our reputation and financial results, as well as subject us to litigation or other proceedings by regulatory authorities.

We may not be able to compete successfully with other restaurants, which could reduce revenues.

The restaurant industry is intensely competitive with respect to price, service, location, food quality, atmosphere and overall dining experience. Our competitors include a large and diverse group of well-recognized upscale steakhouse and upscale casual restaurant chains, including steakhouse and seafood chains as well as restaurants owned by independent local operators. Some of our competitors have substantially greater financial, marketing and other resources, and may be better established in the markets where our restaurants are or may be located. If we cannot compete effectively in one or more of our markets, we may be unable to maintain recent levels of comparable restaurant sales growth and/or may be required to close existing restaurants.

Evolving corporate governance and public disclosure regulations and expectations, including with respect to our environmental, social and governance (ESG) commitments and disclosures, could expose us to numerous risks.

We are subject to the evolving rules and regulations with respect to ESG matters of a number of governmental and self-regulatory bodies and organizations, including the SEC, Nasdaq and the Financial Accounting Standards Board, that could make compliance more difficult and uncertain. In addition, regulators, guests, investors, employees and other stakeholders are increasingly focused on ESG matters and related disclosures. These changing rules, regulations and stakeholder expectations have resulted in, and are likely to continue to result in, increased general and administrative expenses and increased management time and attention to comply with or meet those regulations and expectations. Developing and acting on ESG initiatives and collecting, measuring and reporting ESG-related information and metrics can be costly, difficult and time consuming. Further, ESG-related information is subject to evolving reporting standards, including the SEC's proposed climate-related reporting requirements. Our ESG initiatives and goals could be difficult and expensive to implement, and we could be criticized for the accuracy, adequacy or completeness of our ESG disclosures. Further, statements about our ESG-related initiatives and goals, and progress against those goals, may be based on standards for measuring progress that are still developing, internal controls and processes that continue to evolve and assumptions that are subject to change in the future. In addition, we could be criticized for the scope or nature of such initiatives or goals, or for revisions to these goals. If our ESG-related data, processes and reporting are incomplete or inaccurate, or if we fail to achieve progress with respect to our ESG goals on a timely basis, or at all, our reputation and financial results could be adversely affected.

Risks Related to Financial Performance or General Economic Conditions

An impairment in the financial statement carrying value of our goodwill, other intangible assets or property could adversely affect our financial condition and consolidated results of operations.

Goodwill and owned franchise rights must be reviewed for potential impairment annually and when triggering events are detected. We performed our annual impairment test of goodwill and franchise rights as of November 27, 2022 using a qualitative assessment. Using the qualitative approach, we evaluated factors, including but not limited to: recent financial performance, forecasts for future cash flows, the Company’s stock price and market capitalization, recent impairment tests, legal factors, the business climate, and the competitive environment.

We review property and equipment, which includes leasehold improvements, and operating lease right-of-use (ROU) assets for impairment when events or circumstances indicate these assets might be impaired. We test for impairment using historical cash flow, forecasts and other relevant facts and circumstances as the primary basis for our estimates of future cash flows. The analysis is performed quarterly at the restaurant level for indicators of impairment. In determining future cash flows, we make significant estimates with respect to future operating results of each restaurant over the expected remaining life of the primary asset in the restaurant.

We cannot accurately predict the amount and timing of any impairment of assets. Should the financial statement carrying value of goodwill, other intangible assets or property and equipment become impaired, there could be an adverse effect on our financial condition and consolidated results of operations.

We cannot assure our stockholders that we will continue to pay quarterly cash dividends on our common stock or repurchase shares of our common stock under our share repurchase program. Failure to continue to pay quarterly cash dividends to our stockholders or repurchase shares of our common stock under our share repurchase program could cause the market price for our common stock to decline.

We repurchase of shares of our common stock under our share repurchase program. In fiscal year 2022, we resumed paying quarterly cash dividends to holders of our common stock. Our ability to pay future quarterly cash dividends or repurchase shares of our common stock will be subject to, among other things, our results of operations, financial condition, business prospects, capital requirements, contractual restrictions, any new indebtedness we may incur, restrictions imposed by applicable law, tax considerations and other factors that our Board of Directors deems relevant. There can be no assurance that we will resume payment of a quarterly cash dividend or repurchase shares of our common stock in the future. Any reduction or discontinuance by us of the payment of quarterly cash dividends or the repurchase of shares of our common stock under our share repurchase program could cause the market price of our common stock to decline. Moreover, in the event our payment of quarterly cash dividends is reduced or discontinued, our failure or inability to resume paying quarterly cash dividends at historical levels could result in a lower market valuation of our common stock.

Local conditions, adverse weather conditions, natural disasters, acts of violence, terrorism or civil unrest, could adversely affect our business.

Certain of the regions in which we operate (including Florida and California where we have a significant number of restaurants) have been, and may in the future be, subject to adverse local conditions, events, terrorist attacks, adverse weather conditions, or natural disasters, such as earthquakes, floods, hurricanes and wildfires. Any of the foregoing events may result in physical damage, temporary or permanent closure, lack of an adequate work force, or temporary or long-term disruption in the supply of food, beverages, electric, water, sewer and waste disposal services necessary for our restaurants to operate. Depending upon its magnitude, any of the foregoing could severely damage our restaurants and/or adversely affect our business, results of operations or financial condition.

We currently maintain property and business interruption insurance through the aggregate property policy for each of our company-owned locations. However, if there is a major disaster, such coverage may not be adequate. In addition, upon the expiration of our current insurance policies, adequate insurance coverage may not be available at reasonable rates, or at all.

We have disaster recovery procedures and business continuity plans in place to address most events of a crisis nature (including hurricanes and other natural disasters) including back up and off-site locations for recovery of electronic and other forms of data and information. However, if we are unable to fully implement our disaster recovery plans, we may experience delays in recovery of data, inability to perform vital functions, tardiness in required reporting and compliance, failures to adequately support restaurant operations and other breakdowns in normal communication and operating procedures that may have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and exposure to administrative and other legal claims.

The cost of our employee health care benefit program may increase in the future.

We maintain an employee benefits program that provides self-insured and insured coverage to employees that meet the applicable requirements under the program. Employees can elect to enroll dependents that meet eligibility criteria. Coverage includes health, dental, vision, short- and long-term disability, life insurance and other voluntary ancillary benefits. Employees share in the cost of other coverage at varying levels. The Company has historically funded a majority of the cost of health benefits.

The Company routinely reviews its health benefit plans to assure conformity with government regulations. Approximately 62% of eligible employees elect to participate in our health benefit plans. The “hours of service” eligibility criteria for the Company’s health benefits plan are lower than those required by law. In the future, proportionately more employees may elect to participate in our health benefit plans. We are unable to reliably predict to what extent, if any, the percentage of eligible employees who elect health care coverage will increase in the future. Because we fund a majority of the cost of health benefits, our financial accounting expense will increase to the extent that additional employees elect to participate in the Company’s health benefit plans.

Certain other restaurant companies may curtail the ability of their employees to participate in their health benefit plans by increasing the hours worked eligibility requirement to the minimum required under the ACA. Such restaurant companies may gain a cost advantage compared to us by reducing the cost of their employee health benefit programs.

Also, medical inflation has historically tended to outpace general inflation. We are unable to reliably predict the extent to which future medical inflation will outpace general inflation. Additionally, because our medical benefit program is self-insured, an unusual incidence of large claims may cause our costs to unexpectedly increase.

Economic downturns or changes in consumer confidence may adversely impact consumer spending patterns.

Economic downturns have in the past and could in the future negatively impact consumer spending patterns. Any decrease in consumer spending patterns or demand specific to our business may result in a decline in our operating performance. Economic downturns may reduce guest traffic and require us to lower our prices, which reduces our revenues and operating income, which may adversely affect the market price for our common stock. In addition, some of our restaurants are located in areas that we consider tourist or vacation destinations. In those locations, we depend in large part on vacation travelers to frequent our Ruth’s Chris Steak House restaurants, and such destinations typically experience a reduction in visitors during economic downturns, thereby reducing the potential guests that could visit our restaurants. A significant portion of our gross revenue comes from business guests and private dining which could also be negatively affected during an economic downturn or decrease in consumer confidence. This could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations and growth strategy. Disasters occurring at one of our franchisee’s locations could impact our reputation and our consumers’ perception of our brand. Moreover, these types of events could negatively impact consumer spending in the impacted regions or, depending on the severity, globally, which could adversely impact our operating results. 

Litigation concerning food quality, health, employment practices, real estate and other issues could require us to incur additional liabilities and/or cause guests to avoid our restaurants.

Occasionally, our guests file complaints or lawsuits against us alleging that we are responsible for some illness or injury they suffered at or after a visit to our restaurants. We are also subject to a variety of other claims arising in the ordinary course of our business, including personal injury claims, contract claims, claims from franchisees, claims from landlords, claims from suppliers, claims alleging violations of federal and state law regarding workplace and employment matters, harassment and discrimination and similar matters. In addition, we have in the past and could in the future become subject to class action lawsuits related to these matters. These actions and proceedings may involve allegations of illegal, unfair or inconsistent employment practices, including wage and hour violations and employment discrimination; guest discrimination; food safety issues including poor food quality, food-borne illness, food tampering, food contamination, and adverse health effects from consumption of various food productions or high-calorie foods. We, and other companies in the restaurant industry, have also been subject to a growing number of claims that the menus and actions of restaurant chains have led to the obesity of certain of their guests. In addition, we are subject to “dram shop” statutes. These statutes generally permit a person injured by an intoxicated person to recover damages from an establishment that wrongfully served alcoholic beverages to the intoxicated person. The restaurant industry has also faced recent claims related to sexual harassment. Regardless of whether any claims against us are valid or whether we are liable, claims may be expensive to defend and may divert time and money away from our operations and hurt our performance. A judgment that significantly exceeds our insurance coverage for any claims or for matters not covered by insurance could materially adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations. Our inability to continue to obtain such insurance coverage at reasonable costs also could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. Adverse publicity or a failure to respond effectively resulting from these claims may also negatively impact our reputation and revenues at one or more of our restaurants.

If we fail to comply with applicable federal, state and local employment and labor laws and regulations, it could have a material, adverse impact on our business.

Various federal, state and local employment and labor laws and regulations govern our relationships with our employees. These laws and regulations relate to matters such as employment discrimination, wage and hour laws, requirements to provide and document meal and rest periods or other benefits, family leave mandates, requirements regarding working conditions and accommodations to certain employees, citizenship or work authorization and related requirements, insurance and workers’ compensation rules, healthcare laws, and anti-discrimination and anti-harassment laws. We incur substantial costs to comply with these laws and regulations and non-compliance could expose us to significant liabilities. For example, a number of lawsuits previously have been filed against us alleging violations of federal and state laws regarding employee wages and payment of overtime, meal and rest breaks, employee classification, employee record-keeping and related practices with respect to our employees. We incur legal costs to defend these cases, and we could incur losses from these and similar cases, and the amount of such losses or costs could be material.

In addition, several jurisdictions, including New York City, Philadelphia, Seattle, and Oregon have implemented fair workweek or “secure scheduling” legislation, which impose complex requirements related to scheduling for certain restaurant and retail employees, and additional jurisdictions are considering similar legislation. Several jurisdictions also have implemented sick pay and paid time off legislation, which requires employers to provide paid time off to employees, and “just cause” termination legislation, which restricts companies’ ability to terminate employees or reduce employees’ hours unless they can prove “just cause” or a “bona fide economic reason” for the termination or reduction in hours. All of these regulations impose additional obligations on us and our failure to comply with any of these regulations could subject us to penalties and other legal liabilities, which could adversely affect our business and results of operations and potentially cause us to close or reduce operating hours of some restaurants in these jurisdictions.

Tax assessments or unclaimed property audits by governmental authorities could adversely impact our operating results.

We remit a variety of taxes and fees to various governmental authorities, including federal and state income taxes, excise taxes, franchise taxes, property taxes, sales and use taxes, and payroll taxes. The taxes and fees remitted by us are subject to review and audit by the applicable governmental authorities, which can result in liability for additional assessments. In addition, we are subject to unclaimed or abandoned property (escheat) laws which require us to turn over to certain government authorities the property of others held by us that has been unclaimed for a specified period. We are subject to audits by individual U.S. states regarding our escheatment practices. The legislation and regulations related to tax and unclaimed property matters tend to be complex and subject to varying interpretations by both government authorities and taxpayers. Although management believes that the positions are reasonable, various taxing authorities have in the past and may in the future challenge certain of the positions we have taken, which may also potentially result in additional liabilities for taxes, unclaimed property and interest in excess of accrued liabilities. Our positions are reviewed as events occur such as the availability of new information, the lapsing of applicable statutes of limitations, the conclusion of tax audits, the measurement of additional estimated liability based on current calculations, the identification of new tax contingencies, or the rendering of relevant court decisions. An unfavorable resolution of assessments by a governmental authority could negatively impact our results of operations and cash flows in future periods.

Market volatility could adversely affect our stock price.

Many factors affect the trading price of our stock, including factors over which we have no control, such as trading activity or communications with activist investors, reports on the economy or the price of commodities, as well as negative or positive announcements by competitors, regardless of whether the report relates directly to our business. In addition to investor expectations, trading activity in our stock can reflect the portfolio strategies and investment allocation changes of institutional holders. Any failure to meet market expectations, whether for sales growth rates, earnings per share or other metrics, could adversely affect our share price. 

In the future we could incur unexpected expenses resulting from the sale of the Mitchell’s Restaurants.

Effective January 21, 2015, we sold the Mitchell’s Restaurants and related assets to Landry’s, Inc. and Mitchell’s Entertainment, Inc., an affiliate of Landry’s Inc. (together with Landry’s Inc., “Landry’s”). Pursuant to the terms of the purchase agreement, upon closing of the sale of the Mitchell’s Restaurants, Landry’s assumed the lease obligations of the Mitchell’s Restaurants. However, we have guaranteed Landry’s lease obligations aggregating $8.3 million under four of the leases which extend until the leases terminate which may continue into 2040 assuming all options are exercised. Separate from the purchase agreement, Landry’s has agreed to indemnify the Company in the event of a default under any of the leases. There is a risk that adverse events may occur that require us to defend against or fulfill an indemnity claim, which could result in unexpected expense.

Risks Related to Our Brand

Negative publicity surrounding our brand, the consumption of beef generally, or shifts in consumer tastes, could reduce sales in one or more of our restaurants and make our brand less valuable.

Our success depends, in large part, upon the reputation of our brand. Negative publicity resulting from poor food quality, illness, injury or other health concerns, or operating problems including disappointing customer experiences related to one or more restaurants, have occurred in the past, could occur in the future, and could make our restaurants less appealing to consumers. Further, the influence of social media could make it more difficult for us to respond to negative publicity in a timely or effective manner. Consumers value readily available information and often act on such information without further investigation and without regard to its accuracy. The harm may be immediate without affording us the opportunity for redress or correction. In addition, any shifts in consumer preferences away from the kinds of food we offer, particularly beef, whether because of environmental, dietary or other health concerns or otherwise, would make our restaurants less appealing and adversely affect revenues. Our restaurants are required to disclose calorie information on menus, which could have an adverse effect on our revenues and results of operations.

Our franchisees could take actions that harm our reputation and reduce our royalty and restaurant revenues.

We do not exercise control over the day-to-day operations of our franchisee-owned restaurants. While we strive to ensure that franchisee-owned restaurants maintain the same high operating standards that we demand of Company-owned restaurants, one or more of these restaurants may fail to maintain these standards or provide a customer experience consistent with our brand standards. Any operational or financial shortcomings of the franchisee-owned restaurants are likely to be attributed to our system-wide operations and could adversely affect our reputation and damage our brand as well as have a direct negative impact on the royalty income we receive from those restaurants. Franchisee noncompliance with the operational standards and the terms and conditions of our franchise agreements may reduce the overall goodwill of our brand, whether through the failure to meet health and safety standards, engage in quality control or maintain product consistency, adequate succession planning or through the participation in improper or objectionable business practices. Moreover, unauthorized third parties may use our intellectual property to trade on the goodwill of the Company’s brand, resulting in consumer confusion or dilution. Any harm to our brand or goodwill, customer confusion or brand dilution could materially and adversely impact our business and results of operations.

The operation of restaurants by franchisees in international markets also create additional risks to our brands and reputation.

Our international operations are subject to all the same risks associated with our domestic operations, as well as numerous additional risks. These include, among other things, international economic and political conditions, foreign currency fluctuations and differing cultures and consumer preferences. We are also subject to governmental regulation in such international markets, including antitrust and tax requirements, anti-boycott regulations, COVID-19 related regulations, import/export/customs regulations and other international trade regulations, the USA Patriot Act and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Any new regulatory or trade initiatives could impact our operations in certain countries. Failure to comply with any such legal requirements could subject us to monetary liabilities and other sanctions, which could harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our failure to enforce our service marks or other proprietary rights could adversely affect our competitive position or the value of our brands.

We own certain common law service mark rights and a number of federal and international service mark registrations, most importantly the Ruth’s Chris Steak House names and logos, copyrights relating to text and print uses, and other proprietary intellectual property rights. We believe that our service marks, copyrights and other proprietary rights are important to our success and competitive position. Protective actions we take with respect to these rights may fail to prevent unauthorized usage or imitation by others, which could harm our reputation, brand or competitive position and, if we commence litigation to enforce our rights, cause us to incur significant legal expenses.