Ruby Tuesday to shutter 95 restaurants nationwide

Shares of Ruby Tuesday Inc (RT.N) plunged as much as 14 percent in extended trading on Thursday after the restaurant chain operator posted its fourth straight quarterly loss and said it would close about 95 restaurants.

The company, whose shares had fallen about 44 percent in the past 12 months through Thursday's close, also forecast 2017 adjusted profit far below analysts' estimate.

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The casual dining chain, which sold its Lime Fresh Mexican Grill brand in June, said the stores will cease operations by September and it expected to incur related pre-tax charges of $72 million to $81 million.

Ruby Tuesday had about 724 restaurants systemwide as of May 31.

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The company forecast adjusted profit of between 5 cents and 9 cents per share for its financial year ending June 6, 2017, compared with analysts' average estimate of 13 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Same-restaurant sales fell 3.7 percent in the fourth quarter, much bigger than the 1.7 percent decline in the same period a year earlier.

Total revenue fell 5.9 percent to $279.3 million.

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Chief Executive JJ Buettgen blamed softness in the casual dining industry and increased promotional activity by rivals for the results.

Buettgen said he expected the macro environment to remain challenging for some time.

The company's shares were trading down 10 percent at $3.35 in after-hours trading on Thursday.

(Reporting by Arathy S Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)

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