Dunkin' Donuts aims to boost afternoon sales

Will Americans run to Dunkin' later in the day? The coffee and doughnut chain hopes so.

Dunkin' Donuts said Tuesday that is working to increase sales after the morning rush, a strategy that coffee chain Starbucks recently said is was also pursuing.

The two companies see the afternoon hours as a way to boost sales. In the past, both have offered promotions in the later part of the day to bring more people in their doors.

Dunkin' Brands executives said on a conference call that they'll give more details about their plans during the company's investor day event on Thursday.

The owner of Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin-Robbins reported better-than-expected results for the fourth quarter.

It had net income of $195.5 million, or $2.13 per share. Earnings, adjusted for one-time gains and costs, were 64 cents per share, beating analyst expectations of 63 cents per share, according to Zacks Investment Research.

The Canton, Massachusetts-based company reported revenue of $227.1 million, above the $223 million analysts expected.

For the year, the company earned $350.9 million, or $3.80 per share. Revenue was reported as $860.5 million.

Shares of Dunkin' Brands Group Inc. slipped $1.18, or 1.9 percent, to $59.66 in trading Tuesday.

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Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on DNKN at https://www.zacks.com/ap/DNKN