The corporate parent of Hardee’s, the hamburger chain with a long history in Eastern North Carolina, is changing hands.
CKE Restaurants, which acquired Hardee’s in 1997 and also owns the Carl’s Jr. fast-food chain, announced Friday it agreed to be bought by a Boston-based private equity firm for about $928 million.
The takeover by Thomas H. Lee Partners LP comes as consumers cut back on eating out during the recession. Carl’s Jr. is heavily concentrated in California, which has been hit hard by the housing slump and soaring unemployment. Sales at CKE’s restaurants open at least a year fell 6 percent in the latest quarter. Read on.
Photo: John Rottet.