Restaurant chains including Boston Market Corp., Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) and Applebee’s may see a boost in sales as consumers flock to eateries after Hurricane Sandy flooded the East Coast, leaving millions without power.
While restaurants may be “hit initially” because of store closings, sales will start picking up as consumers who lost power along the East Coast eat out more frequently, said Stephen Anderson, an analyst at Miller Tabak & Co. in New York.
“There is cabin fever — the same thing happened after Hurricane Irene last year,” he said. “October’s loss will be November’s gain” for restaurants, Anderson said.
Sandy, spanning 900 miles, caused flooding, high winds and fallen trees that cut power to about 8 million customers from South Carolina to Maine. Economic damage and losses from the storm may be as much as $20 billion, according to Eqecat Inc., a risk-management company in Oakland, California.