Type: Private
On the web: http://www.ckr.com
Employees: 20,300
Employee growth: (4.7%)

There's really nothing junior about this company, other than the name of its flagship hamburger chain. CKE Restaurants is a leading fast-food operator with more than 3,150 eateries across the country. Its Carl's Jr. chain, known for its signature Six Dollar Burger, includes about 1,250 locations primarily in California and other western states. CKE also owns Hardee's Food Systems, which operates and franchises roughly 1,900 Hardee's locations, mostly in the Midwest and Southeast. About 890 of CKE's restaurants are corporate-owned, while the rest are franchised or licensed. The company was taken private by investment firm Apollo Management in 2010.

Key numbers for fiscal year ending January, 2011:
Sales: $1,330.6M
One year growth: (6.2%)
Net income: ($36.3)M

Officers:
CEO and Director: Andrew F. Puzder
President, Chief Legal Officer, and Secretary: E. Michael Murphy
EVP and CFO: Theodore (Ted) Abajian

Competitors:
Burger King
Jack in the Box
McDonald's

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