What is Chick-fil-A’s stock price, and are they publicly traded? Investors cannot purchase shares of Chick-fil-A because it is a private company. However, investors can purchase their competitor McDonald’s shares under the stock symbol (NYSE: MCD).
Chick-fil-A’s Christian family values might not be preserved in the hands of the public. Granted, Chick-fil-A stock would be doing super well if they did go public, but Truett Cathy never wanted the company to go public, and his family is carrying that on.
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Chick Fil A Introduction (No Stock Symbol)
Chick Fil A’s food is delicious and the service is impeccable. So this begs the question, will there ever be an IPO for Chick-fil-A that we can invest in or trade someday? With annual revenues of more than $1 billion and ranking 8th in U.S. sales, buying Chick Fil A stock seems like a no-brainer. Let’s look under the hood to see if we can get a piece of this fast-food behemoth.
Founded by Truett Cathy in Hapeville, Georgia, in 1946, Chick-fil-A has exploded to become the largest chicken fast-food franchise in the U.S. With over 1900 locations in 42 states, the franchise is still family-owned and privately held. Thousands of entrepreneurs apply for a Chick-fil-A franchise yearly, but only a few will receive the opportunity.
Undoubtedly, Chick-fil-A is one of America’s best and most successful fast-food franchise chains. Chick-fil-A units ranked 8th in U.S. sales and are the most frequent fast food restaurant in 38 out of 50 states.
Chick-fil-A makes about $4.4 million in sales per year – $1.7 million more than the next best restaurant, Whataburger.
In fact, despite being closed every Sunday, Chick-fil-A makes more per restaurant than McDonald’s, Subway, and Starbucks combined. How crazy is that?!
Chick-Fil-A Success
On no uncertain terms, their success comes from what they do best: feeding people delicious, finger-licking chicken.
I’d be remiss not to mention their friendly workers who serve without discrimination. Perhaps this is based on their Christian philosophies of treating their customers with kindness and respect. In turn, all customers feel at home while enjoying their grilled chicken sandwiches.
Can You Invest in Chick Fil A Stock?
With revenue numbers like that, buying stock seems like a no-brainer. In light of this, even amateur investors would open their pocketbooks to get a piece of the chicken.
But you can’t. Chick-fil-A is a privately held company. Stock trading is hampered by companies that aren’t publicly traded, which can stink with extremely successful companies.
5 Reasons Why You Can't
- The wish of the founder, Truett Cathy
- To keep full control through the ownership
- They’re successful enough and don’t need our money
- They don’t want too many “cooks in the kitchen.”
- Sustaining the culture they’ve become known for
Like any other private company, there are various reasons they remain so. Before you get mad and curse them for being selfish, here are a few reasons why Chick-fil-A stocks may not be available.
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The Founder's Wish
When the company founder, Truett Cathy, died in 2014, he gave the leadership to his son, T. Dan Cathy. Before Cathy died, he drafted a contract stating that the company’s ownership should remain private and in the family. Since then, nothing has changed, and it does not trade on the stock exchange.
When company stocks are not out for the public to buy, they retain ownership and the power to dictate how it should run. I couldn’t agree more. I wouldn’t want anyone telling me how to run my affairs or dictating how I should do things. And that’s what Cathy, the founder, wished for Chick-fil-A.
One of the reasons a company chooses to become public is to raise money. For example, they may want to expand to different cities or countries or buy new equipment; the list goes on and on. To get the money they need, they raise it by selling stocks as an IPO.
Let’s be clear: due to its extraordinary success, Chick-fil-A does not need to sell its stock to raise money. With revenues that would make anyone’s head spin, they have been able to sustain their expansion and operations without outside help.
No More Cooks in the Kitchen
Have you ever heard of the phrase “too many cooks in the kitchen”? That situation can be an unfortunate reality for companies that go public.
In this scenario, think of cooks as shareholders. Every additional cook has a different idea of how to do something. Considering there’s more than one way to skin a cat – or a chicken, listening to all 50 cooks can be tedious and detrimental to a company.
As it stands, Chick-fil-A’s been doing quite fine on its own for the past 74 years. They have confidence in their management team and trust all their decisions. Quite frankly, what they don’t need is outsider interference; this is a smart business philosophy.
Sustaining Their Culture
Chick-fil-A is unique in that it subscribes to certain beliefs and principles. Cathy, their founder, had a business philosophy that management still respects to this day — and that is their refusal to operate on Sundays.
I like the forced rest day; it’s about something other than the money. Consequently, that may change if they allow dictation from the outside.
The Cathy family probably has all the money they need and the desire to continue running the company as they see fit. They also have family members who are interested in pursuing the mission.
Going public would bring changes that might increase corporate profitability but likely would change the company so that it was no longer unique in the market. To be very specific, do you think that they would continue to be closed on Sundays if shareholders in the public domain owned them?
McDonald’s ($MCD) TipRanks Stock Forecast Report 3/24
Ways to Invest in Chick-Fil-A
Just because Chick-fil-A stocks aren’t publicly traded doesn’t mean you can’t be part of their success. How can one achieve that? By franchising. For an initial financial fee of $10,000, selected franchisees get the rights necessary to operate a franchised Chick-fil-A Restaurant business.
However, competition is fierce. But, if luck is on your side, and they pick you, the fees for constructing the premises are covered (sort of). Once complete, they hand you over the keys to the branch for you to run.
This comes with a few feathers attached. Firstly, you must give Chick-fil-A 15% of your daily sales for the construction and operational fees. Secondly, you must pay them 50% of your net sales after taxation at the end of each month.
Oh, not to mention the fact you can’t open on Sundays. One downside of franchising Chick-fil-A is that you don’t have any equity in the company or any rights to sell or pass it on.
Final Thoughts
Don’t despair since you can’t get a piece of your favorite chicken sandwich; you have other options. Have you thought of investing in Mickey D’s?
With its 36,000 restaurants, McDonald’s (MCD) is a significant force in the fast-food industry. Likewise, another major heavy hitter, KFC, has 21,000 worldwide locations.
Unlike McDonald’s, you can’t directly purchase shares because it’s not a standalone public business. Instead, you only need to buy shares in its corporate parent, Yum! Brands (YUM).
Chick-Fil-A is one of North America’s fastest-growing and most successful fast food operations. Even though you can’t buy stock in Chick-Fil-A, you can certainly purchase stock in their competitors in the market.
Frequently Asked Questions
Chick-fil-A is a private company and doesn't have a publicly traded stock symbol for investors to purchase.
Chick-Fil-A stock is not available because they are a private company. They don't trade on a major public exchange.
Chick-fil-A is estimated to be worth 4.5 billion dollars. The company's president is Dan Cathy.
