What is Quiznos’ stock price, and are they publicly traded? Unfortunately, investors cannot purchase shares of Quiznos because it is a private company. However, McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD), Chipotle (NASDAQ: CMG), and Restaurant Brand International (NYSE: RBI ) are grocery stocks that traders can invest in.
Who doesn’t love a good sandwich? Fast-food restaurant chains have been a profitable investment over the years. Why? Because they provide a consistent and predictable experience at a relatively low price. Quiznos checks all these boxes, although recent history hasn’t been as kind to the company. We’ll get into that a little later in the article.
At one point, many believed that Quiznos would challenge Subway as the top sandwich chain on the market. While that didn’t come to fruition, there are plenty of people who remain loyal to Quiznos. It’s probably the toasted bun!
If you’re a fan of Quiznos sandwiches and want to add Quiznos stock to your portfolio, this article is for you. We’ll discuss buying Quiznos stock, investing in other fast-food brands, and discussing what happened to this once-impressive company.
Table of Contents
Quiznos Introduction (No Stock Symbol)
Quiznos is an American fast-food chain that specializes in submarine sandwiches. It was founded in 1981 and is in Denver, Colorado. Jimmy Lambatos and Todd Disner, two restaurant industry veterans, founded the company.
Lambatos was an executive chef at the Colorado Mine Co. Steakhouse and had previously owned an Italian restaurant called Footers a few years before Quiznos.
At first, Lambatos did not intend for Quiznos to become a chain. He toasted the buns of the sandwiches to bring out the sandwich’s flavor. Lambatos also wanted to include things like soups and salads on the menu.
How did Lambatos and Disner settle on the name Quiznos? Lambatos read an article in the Wall Street Journal about how to make a memorable name. The article stated that using uncommon letters, in this case, Q and Z, would stand out in people’s minds.
Expansion of the Quiznos brand began in 1983 when Lambatos began to sell franchises to willing owners. By 1987, there were 12 locations across the country, but one family was about to open its first of four Quiznos locations in the Boulder, Colorado, area.
In 1991, the Schaden family purchased all 18 Quiznos locations from Lambatos and Disner and re-branded the company as Quiznos Franchise Corp.
From there, Quiznos rapidly expanded throughout the country and internationally into Canada and Puerto Rico. By 1997, Quiznos had 278 locations worldwide, making it the third-largest sandwich chain.
In the 2000s, Quiznos expanded into Australia, New Zealand, Asia, Europe, and India. At the height of its popularity, Quiznos had over 5,000 locations worldwide. However, there is no Quiznos stock to date.
Can I Buy Quiznos Stock?
In the year 2024, you cannot buy Quiznos stock. The company is not a public company, so you won’t be able to find Quiznos shares on the stock market.
In 1994, the Schaden family took Quiznos public with its IPO in February. The initial offering was for 1 million shares of stock that started trading at $5.00 per share. Unfortunately, Quiznos returned private in June 2001 and has not returned to the stock market since then.
With such a fun name, the possibilities for its ticker symbol are endless! When it was a public company, it traded under the ticker NASDAQ: QUIZ. In my mind, QZ and QZNOS would also have been acceptable!
Quiznos Stocks Competition
Are you looking to invest in companies with business plans similar to Quiznos? Chain restaurants have always been popular in America, and several companies trade publicly on the stock market. Even though you can’t add Quiznos stock to your portfolio, perhaps one of these stocks will appeal to you!
1. McDonald's Corp (NYSE: MCD)
No fast food restaurant list is complete without mentioning McDonald’s, a Quiznos stock alternative. It is the world’s largest fast-food restaurant brand, with over 41,000 locations as of the end of 2023. McDonald’s is also the second-largest employer in the world, after Walmart.
McDonald’s is known worldwide for its Golden Arches logo and memorable menu items like the Big Mac, Happy Meals, and delicious french fries. Richard and Maurice McDonald founded The company in 1940 in San Bernadino, California. Still, it didn’t truly reach mainstream culture until Ray Kroc acquired it acquired it in 1955.
Today, McDonald’s is a nearly $200 billion company, and its stock is a foundational component of the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average. It has a five-year return of about 36% and currently pays a quarterly dividend with a yield of 2.47%.
2. Restaurant Brands Intl (NYSE: RBI)
Restaurant Brands International is one of the largest chain restaurant conglomerates in the world. It owns over 30,000 restaurants for global fast-food brands like Burger King, Tim Horton’s, and Popeyes. This conglomerate is based in Toronto, Canada, although its American holdings are in Miami, Florida.
RBI stock is dual-listed on both the New York Stock Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange. Despite the long list of holdings, RBI is only a $22 billion company.
The stock has returned 6.3% over the past five years without including dividend reinvestment. RBI pays out a quarterly dividend to shareholders with a yield of 3.23%. As a result, check them out in place of Quiznos stock.
3. Chipotle (NASDAQ: CMG)
Are you a fan of Mexican fast food? Then you’ve probably been to one of the 3400 global locations of Chipotle Mexican Grill. This company started in 1993 when Steve Ells established a Chipotle-themed Mexican restaurant in Denver, Colorado. After opening 16 locations in Colorado, McDonald’s became a major investor in 1998.
By 2006, Chipotle had grown to more than 600 locations. McDonald’s divested itself as an investor that year, which is likely a decision it still regrets. Since then, Chipotle has added nearly 3,000 stores and has grown to an $87 billion company.
The first thing most traders will see is Chipotle’s stock price. As of May 2024, shares are trading at above $3,100. Why is this? Chipotle has an extremely small float of shares, with just over 27 million shares outstanding.
Just as a comparison, McDonald’s has over 720 million shares outstanding. That’s about to change, though, as Chipotle is undergoing a massive 50 to 1 stock split on June 26, 2024.
4. Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX)
Starbucks is a company that needs no introduction. Like McDonald’s, it is one of the most recognizable brands in the world. This coffee and beverage titan started in 1971 in Seattle, Washington. As of May 2024, the company operates over 32,000 locations across 80 countries worldwide.
The company has taken some slack in recent years following a CEO change and some disappointing quarters. Much of Starbucks’ growth comes from international expansion.
It currently targets India as its next big market but has seen some decline in China. Starbucks has returned a loss of -4.16% over the past five years. The stock does pay a quarterly dividend with a current yield of 3.01%.
Does Subway Have a Stock?
Before you started reading this article, you probably wondered about Subway stock. After all, if there was Quiznos stock, shouldn’t Subway as well? Well, the answer is that neither company is public.
Subway is one of the largest restaurant chains in the world, having more than 40,000 locations. The company was privately owned by its founding families until 2024 when it was sold to Roark Capital. As a result, this is one of America’s largest private equity firms, with over $37 billion in assets under management.
If you want to buy Subway stock, you’re not alone. It is one private company that many investors wish was publicly traded. You can add it to the list of other major private companies like Lego and Ikea.
What Happened to Quiznos?
It hasn’t been a smooth road for Quiznos stock. After rocketing global popularity in the early 2000s, Quiznos has mostly fallen off the map. From 2007 to 2009, the company closed more than 1,000 locations in the United States.
A further 2,000 locations were shut down during the Great Recession, and the company was eventually sold in 2012 to Avenue Capital Group.
In March 2014, Quiznos filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and managed to restructure and emerge from it in June of the same year. As of the end of 2023, only 145 Quiznos restaurants remained in the United States.
Final Thoughts: Quiznos Stock
Despite making a great toasted sandwich, Quiznos is slowly fading away into the history books. Not only is Quiznos not a publicly traded company, but I’m not sure you would want to own their stock anyway. The company has fallen from grace and is hanging onto just 145 locations.
Although you can’t buy Quiznos stock, you can invest in some great fast-food chains. Stocks like McDonald’s and Chipotle have provided excellent returns to shareholders over the years. I guess cheeseburgers and burritos are more popular than sandwiches on Wall Street!
If you liked learning about Quiznos stock’s history, check out our investing community at Bullishbears.com!
Frequently Asked Questions
No, Quiznos is no longer a public company. The company traded on the NASDAQ exchange years ago, but a private equity firm now owns it. You won't be able to trade or own Quiznos stock in your portfolio.
High Bluff Capital Partners, a California private equity firm, owns Quiznos. It was acquired in June 2018 and is managed by the REGO Restaurant Group, the restaurant arm of High Bluff.
No, like Quiznos, Subway is a privately owned company. Roark Capital owns Subway. They acquired Subway earlier in 2024. Until then, Subway was owned by the founding families for more than 60 years.
As of 2024, just 145 Quiznos locations remain in the United States. REGO Restaurant Group has been experimenting with new types of locations for Quiznos and testing new prototypes around the US.
