Shares of Cheesecake Factory Inc. CAKE, -4.69% dropped more than 10% in the extended session Tuesday after the restaurant chain surprised investors with a quarterly loss and sales that were below Wall Street expectations, saying that inflation and higher costs continued to eat away at its operations. Cheesecake Factory lost $2.4 million, or 5 cents a share, in the fiscal third quarter, swinging from earnings of $33 million, or 64 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Adjusted for one-time items, the company lost 3 cents a share. Analysts polled by FactSet looked for adjusted earnings of 27 cents a share on sales of $799 million. The company’s restaurants are “effectively managing what is in their control,” with productivity and food efficiency exceeding expectations, but the business continues “to face a dynamic and challenging inflationary environment in some areas,” leading to higher-than-anticipated operating expenses, especially with utilities and building maintenance, the company said. Shares of Cheesecake Factory ended the regular trading day down 4.7%.
