June 27, 2016
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Response:
The Company respectfully acknowledges the Staffs comment. The Company plans to revise its disclosure on page 42, as indicated below, in accordance with the Staffs request in future filings with the Commission.
Non-GAAP Reconciliations
The table below contains
information regarding EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA, which are non-GAAP measures, which may differ from similarly captioned measures of other companies in our industry. We believe that these non-GAAP measures are useful to investors
in assessing our operating performance, as it provides them with the same tools that management uses to evaluate our performance and is responsive to questions we receive from both investors and analysts. By disclosing these non-GAAP measures, we
intend to provide investors with a consistent comparison of our operating results and trends for the periods presented. EBITDA is defined as earnings (net income or loss) before interest, (gain) loss on early extinguishment of
debt, taxes, and depreciation and amortization and is used by management to measure the operating performance of the business. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as EBITDA excluding the non-cash impact of share-based compensation
and non-cash incentive compensation expense, other operating expenses (income), net,and (income) loss from equity method investments, net of cash distributions received from equity method investments, and
allas well as other operating expenses (income), net. Other specifically identified costs associated with nonrecurring projects are also excluded from Adjusted EBITDA, including acquisition accounting
impact on cost of sales and, TH Tim Hortons transaction and restructuring costs and integration costs, each of which is associated with the acquisition of Tim Hortons. Adjusted
EBITDA is used by management to measure operating performance of the business, excluding these non-cash and other specifically identified items that management believes do not directly reflect our core operations,
andare not relevant to managements assessment of operating performance or the performance of an acquired business. Adjusted EBITDA, as defined above, also represents our measure of segment income.
* * * * *
The Company acknowledges that (a) it is responsible for the adequacy and accuracy of the disclosure in the filings, (b) Staff comments or changes to disclosure in response to Staff comments do not foreclose the Commission from taking any action with respect to the filings, and (c) the Company may not assert Staff comments as a defense in any proceeding initiated by the Commission or any person under the federal securities laws of the United States.
June 27, 2016
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We hope that the foregoing has been responsive to the Staffs comments and look forward to resolving any outstanding issues as quickly as possible. Please direct any questions, comments or requests for further information to me at 954-768-8255 or email at macculloughk@gtlaw.com.
Very truly yours,
GREENBERG TRAURIG, P.A.
/s/ Kara L. MacCullough
Kara L. MacCullough
cc: | Joshua Kobza, Chief Financial Officer |
Jill Granat, General Counsel & Secretary |