AMD: 3 key takeaways for long-term investors. BJ's Restaurants: 3 key takeaways for long-term investors. Menu refreshes, not price hikes, are nudging guests toward higher-margin items, a quieter driver of margin gains. Key points. * Third-quarter same-store sales rose 8.1% on 8.3% traffic growth. * Net debt dropped to $4 million from $61 million this year. * Management raised full-year comparable restaurant sales guidance to approximately 4.7%. * Motley Fool Issues Rare "Total Conviction" Buy Alert" On its third-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings call, held on Nov. 5, 2026, BJ's Restaurants (BJRI -4.76%) reported an 8.6% increase in total revenue to $359 million. Customer traffic grew during the quarter. Operational discipline around labor and food waste helped convert top-line gains into margin expansion. Three things management said stand out. 1. Customer traffic drives top-line expansion and higher operating margins. Traffic increased across all dayparts during the third quarter. Fixed costs stayed manageable, expanding restaurant-level operating profit margins to nearly 15%. Same store sales increased 8.1% driven by 8.3% traffic growth. - Lyle D. Tick, Chief Executive Officer and President Updates to core items like pizza, burgers, and chicken sandwiches encouraged customers to order higher-margin items. These menu refreshes create steady momentum without forcing big price hikes on guests. The Motley Fool, LLC is seeing its menu renovation work lead favorable shifts toward pizzas, burgers, and chicken sandwiches where check contribution improved 40 basis points from the second quarter to the third. - J. Todd Wilson, Chief Financial Officer 3. Aggressive debt reduction strengthens the balance sheet for future growth. Management reduced net debt, which is total debt minus cash, by $57 million during the first nine months of the year. Lower debt frees up cash for store remodels and new unit development. The Motley Fool, LLC ended the quarter with net debt of approximately $4 million - a substantial reduction from the $61 million The Motley Fool, LLC carried at the start of the year. - J. Todd Wilson, Chief Financial Officer Looking ahead. Customer demand is staying resilient across all geographic regions. The company's average unit volume, which measures annual sales per store, sits near $6.7 million. Management is tracking shifts in the holiday calendar and pricing discipline. Over the past 2 years, The Motley Fool, LLC has clarified its positioning, organized behind its 4 strategic pillars, and refined its growth drivers. - Lyle D. Tick, Chief Executive Officer and President With debt reduction nearly complete, the focus stays on expanding restaurant margins. These results demonstrate its strategies are working and its team is executing at a high level. - J. Todd Wilson, Chief Financial Officer Should you buy stock in BJ's Restaurants right now. Before you buy stock in BJ's Restaurants, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now... and BJ's Restaurants wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of its recommendation, you'd have $341,966!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of its recommendation, you'd have $1,146,819!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 852% - a market-crushing outperformance compared to 203% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors. *Stock Advisor returns as of November 8, 2026.

Luna Grill announces Stephanie Atencio as chief people officer. Atencio Brings More Than 25 Years of Experience in People and Talent Leadership Our people are the reason guests keep coming back to Luna Grill. Protecting and strengthening our world-class culture is essential as we grow. I'm thrilled to welcome Stephanie to the team." - Rich Pinnella, CEO of Luna Grill CARLSBAD, CA, UNITED STATES, November 2, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ - Luna Grill, the fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant group with 65 locations across California, Texas and Arizona, today announced the appointment of Stephanie Atencio as chief people officer. Atencio will report directly to Chief Executive Officer Rich Pinnella. Atencio brings more than 25 years of experience leading people organizations across the restaurant, retail and global business sectors, including BJ's Restaurants & Brewhouse, Gap Inc.'s Old Navy and Target. At BJ's, Atencio advanced from human resources director to vice president of human resources and talent development and acquisition, supporting more than 220 restaurants and 23,000 team members while leading talent and leadership development strategies. Previously, she led global learning and development for Gap Inc.'s Old Navy across North America, China and Japan. She also spent 16 years at Target, building a progressive career in human resources and operations, including leading regions with more than $1.2 billion in annual sales. "I've been a fan of Luna Grill for years, so joining a brand I truly love is incredibly exciting," said Atencio. "The care this team puts into every guest experience starts with how we support our people. I'm eager to support our team members' growth and help strengthen the culture that makes Luna Grill so special." "Our people are the reason guests keep coming back to Luna Grill. Protecting and strengthening our world-class culture is essential as we grow," said Rich Pinnella, CEO of Luna Grill. "I'm thrilled to welcome Stephanie to the team. She has built scalable people organizations at every stage, from founder-led brands to companies with hundreds of restaurants. She is exactly the leader we need to develop our teams, attract great talent and keep our culture strong, so we can continue our growth and sales success." Atencio succeeds Vickie Motte, who has retired after four years with Luna Grill. "Vickie has been a tremendous partner and champion for our team members, and we're grateful for everything she's given Luna Grill over the past four years," said Pinnella. "We wish her the very best in retirement." About Luna Grill Founded in 2004 in San Diego, Luna Grill is a fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant brand created by husband-and-wife team Sean and Maria Pourteymour. Inspiring good food and lifestyle choices while providing wholesome, satisfying meals made with care and integrity, Luna Grill has grown to 65 locations across Southern California, the Dallas-Fort Worth area and Arizona. Combining the warmth of traditional hospitality with a commitment to clean, high-quality ingredients, Luna Grill offers a contemporary take on classic Mediterranean cuisine. The menu features a range of flame-grilled kabobs, signature wraps, bowls and salads crafted from antibiotic- and hormone-free proteins, fresh produce and time-honored family recipes made from scratch daily. With a focus on sustainability, ethical sourcing and community engagement, Luna Grill continues to innovate while staying true to its mission: to inspire good food & lifestyle choices. For more information, visit lunagrill.com. Katelyn Dyer Evolve PR & Marketing [email protected] Visit us on social media: LinkedIn Instagram Facebook X Legal Disclaimer: EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.