Introduction
To analyze the financial information of the organization the company California Pizza Kitchen can be seen as a suitable choice. California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) is a chain of full-service restaurants, offering California-style cuisine, represented through creative pizzas, pasta, soups, sandwiches, appetizers, and desserts. The restaurant was opened on March 27, 1985, by the attorney’s Rick Rosenfield and Larry Flax, who both hold the position of Co-Chairman of the Board of Directors, Co-President & Co-CEO of the company. The present paper will provide a short description of the organization and the reasons for which it is was deemed suitable for analyzing financial information.
Background
The company currently consists of owned, licensed, or franchised 265 locations in 321 states and 10 foreign countries. The company has 25 years of operational history in the segment of casual dining restaurants (CPK, 2010). The chain has two directions of development, the full-service restaurants, and the CPK/ASAP concept which focuses on the fast-casual service is significantly smaller restaurants. As of 2010, the company employs approximately 14,600 employees, among which 190 employees are working in the company’s headquarters in West Century Boulevard, Los Angeles, California (CPK, 2010, 2011b). The company market value is estimated as $343 million, where the revenues in 2010 were $642.2 million, with a non -GAAP net income of $17.1 million (CPK, 2011a; Forbes, 2011a).
Selection Criteria
The company went public in 200, and thus, it is publicly traded with plenty of information available on its website. Additionally, the company is considerably small having a single direction of development, and a relatively small period of being publicly traded, for comparison reasons. Although the company is currently having a decrease in sales, according to their 2010 financial results, it is appraised on several levels. Forbes magazine put the company on its annual list of self-made entrepreneurs, which are also on the list of America’s best small companies. The conditions taken in consideration include such aspects as annual revenues in the range between $5million and $750 million, being publicly traded at least for a year, and “stock price no lower than $5” (Forbes, 2011a). The criteria for rankings include sales growth, return on equity, and other aspects, for which it is ranked as 192 (Forbes, 2011b). The company might be distinguished among many companies by the fact that the original founders are still taking control of the organization despite going public. Additionally, with the company having its highs and lows during the time it went public, it can be used for comparison purpose with all statements, annual reports, SEC filings, and stock information being available on “Investor Relations” section of the company’s website located at(CPK, 2011c).
Conclusion
The present paper provided a brief overview of the company California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) for the purpose of being approved as the organization to be used during the Session’s Long Project (SLP). The paper argued that the company is a suitable candidate for analyzing its financial information. Being publicly traded, ranked among Forbes 200 small companies in 2009 and publishing all their relevant financial information on their website provides an opportunity for using and analyzing the company’s financial position.
References
CPK. (2010). California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. and Subsidiaries 2009 Annual Report on Form 10-K. California Pizza Kitchen.
CPK. (2011a). California Pizza Kitchen Announces Financial Results for the Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2010. California Pizza Kitchen. Web.
CPK. (2011b). Investors Relations: CPK Fact Sheet. California Pizza Kitchen. Web.
CPK. (2011c). Investors Relations: Financial Information. California Pizza Kitchen. Web.
Forbes. (2011a). The 200 Best Small Companies: California Pizza Kitchen. Forbes.com LLC . Web.
Forbes. (2011b). In Depth: Self-Made Stars – California Pizza Kitchen. Forbes.com LLC.