Bottom line
- Total investment $670K – $2.5M including a $15K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.6M/year (median $1.5M).
- Rated STRONG with a risk score of 40/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 179 loans (below the industry average).
- Established system with 3,412 units across 52 years of franchising — strong brand recognition and operational playbook.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Yale framework · single-unit ROIC
Returns Analysis
Pulls Item 7 (investment) and Item 19 (revenue) from this brand's FDD into the Yale unlevered-ROIC formula. Override any input to stress-test it against your own assumptions.
The model · Yale framework
What would one Sonic unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
14%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 Sonic units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
40.5%
5.47× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
2.10×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$3.4M
on $12.0M purchase
Total debt
$8.6M
SBA $5.0M + senior + seller note
Overview
About
Franchisees operate quick-service drive-in restaurants featuring burgers, hot dogs, and beverages, managing drive-thru and patio seating operations. Day-to-day responsibilities include inventory management, crew scheduling, food preparation oversight, and customer service across multiple dayparts (breakfast, lunch, dinner). Operators typically manage 15-30 employees and handle marketing within their protected territory.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
Item 19
Financial Performance
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 7 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator — not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee phone area codes (Item 20). Approximate — ported numbers may show the original state, not the franchisee's current location.
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Sonic presents caution-level risk: a shrinking franchise system with undisclosed profitability, material litigation/regulatory issues, and insufficient financial transparency to validate investment returns.
Score breakdown · what drove the 40 / 100 rating
- 01MINORDeclining unit count (-0.8% YoY) suggests system contraction and potential market saturation
- 02MINORNo average net income disclosure (Item 19) prevents ROI validation despite $670K-$2.5M investment range
- 03MINORMultiple data security breaches and regulatory settlements (non-poaching violations) indicate compliance and operational governance issues
- 04MEDHigh investment relative to disclosed revenue ($670K-$2.5M capex vs. $1.55M avg revenue) creates 6-12+ month breakeven risk
- 05MINOR5% royalty on gross sales (not net) means franchisees pay fees even during unprofitable periods
- 06HIGHLitigation history involving affiliated brands (Arby's, Dunkin', Jimmy John's) under same parent suggests systemic corporate compliance problems
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
Item 11
Training & Operations
Item 20
Franchisee Contacts
Phone numbers extracted directly from this brand's FDD Item 20. After purchase, you'll also receive a list of validation questions tailored to this brand.
Franchisee contacts
80 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Sonic · FDD (2026) PDF