Dive Brief:

• Former Jack in the Box CFO Lance Tucker will step in for a second round as the restaurant chain’s finance chief, effective Jan. 13, the company said Tuesday in a securities filing.
• Tucker’s appointment comes after the company announced its CFO, Brian Scott, would be departing the role after just over a year in the seat, in order to return to healthcare solutions company AMN Healthcare with a pay package valued in the millions, CFO Dive previously reported. Scott is set to depart from his role on Nov. 20, after which 24-year company veteran Dawn Hooper will step in as interim CFO for the third time.
• In returning as CFO, the San Diego, California-based restaurant chain is set to pay Tucker a one-time gross cash bonus of $200,000, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The bonus will be payable during the first pay period after his January start date, the company said.

Dive Insight:

Hooper will continue to serve as the restaurant chain’s interim CFO until Tucker takes the seat in January, after which she will re-assume her role as its senior vice president of financial reporting and controller, the company said. As interim CFO, Hooper is set to receive a $19,500 monthly boost to her annual base salary, Jack in the Box previously said.  

As well as the cash bonus, Tucker will receive an annual base salary of $650,000 as CFO, according to the filing. He will also receive a one-time new hire grant of restricted stock units with a value equal to $500,000.

Tucker will also be eligible to receive an annual bonus with a target incentive of 75% of his base salary, payable as a lump-sum cash payment, as well as annual long-term incentive award grant with a value of $1 million at grant, according to the filing.

Jack in the Box, which operates its brand-name restaurants and the Del Taco chain, is leaning on the financial expertise of company veterans such as Hooper and Tucker as it looks to boost sales. The company reported a $122.3 million net loss for its most recent quarter, with same-store sales and revenue both slumping.

Tucker, 55, previously served as the company’s CFO for two years beginning in 2018, according to the filing. His previous roles include a seven-year span as CFO for pizzeria chain Papa John’s, as well as serving as its SVP of strategy and chief of staff, according to his LinkedIn profile. Most recently, he served as CFO for Davidson Hospitality Group.

During his previous tenure as Jack in the Box’s CFO, Tucker “played an instrumental role in implementing the company’s securitization, while returning capital and value to shareholders,” the company said in a press release. “His leadership and strategic thinking had a positive impact on the business.”  

His expertise will enable the company to “strengthen our financial foundation and drive our goals forward,” CEO Darin Harris said in a statement in the release. As CFO, Tucker will oversee financial strategy and operations, among other responsibilities, and will also work closely with the rest of the leadership team to ensure Jack in the Box remains “agile” in the evolving fast-food space, according to the press release.  

Tucker is taking the seat as the company gears up to report its fiscal fourth quarter financial results on Nov. 20, after logging disappointing results for its previous quarter ended July 7. Revenue decreased by 7% year-over-year to $369.2 million, impacted primarily by re-franchising transactions related to its Del Taco chain, the company said.

The company did not immediately respond to requests for additional comment.