Of the total openings, 29 were Wendy's, 27 were Tim Horton's and one was a Baja Fresh. During the quarter, only Tim Horton's had positive same-store sales. Same-store sales for all three brands increased just under 1% for the quarter. Separately, Tim Horton's Canada and US restaurant comps jumped 8.7% and 9.8%, respectively. Wendy's US and franchise same-store sales decreased 4.8% and 5.2%, respectively. Similarly, Baja Fresh comps were down 3.7%.

During the quarter, Wendy's completed an initial public offering of 17.25% of Tim Horton's Inc. The company now trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the NYSE. Wendy's maintains an 82.75% ownership in Tim Hortons and will spin off the remaining ownership position by the end of this year.

Total revenues for the first quarter increased 4.2% to $931.5 million, but net income was flat at $51.2 million compared to $51.3 million for the same period last year due to lower than expected operating profits. The lower operating numbers were offset by an unexpected lower tax rate and lower beef prices, said Kerrii Anderson, interim CEO and president of Wendy's International, during the earnings conference call. The chain does not expect a repeat of the favorable tax rate or beef prices.