This Popular Chain Restaurant Is in Trouble Again After Stock Plunge
Earlier this year, popular pasta-based chain Noodles & Company, with nearly 500 restaurants, revealed it was closing at least 21 restaurants. This was in addition to nine that closed since the end of the first quarter of 2024, when it had 469. At the time, it maintained it wasn’t a sign of duress, but part of a brand transformation and strategy to close underperforming restaurants while opening new, more promising locations. However, this week it was revealed that the Colorado-based chain is facing a possible delisting, and this isn’t the first time it has happened.
This week, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission notified Noodles & Company that its stock price has fallen below the minimum closing bid price of $1 per share for more than 30 business days. This means it is out of compliance with Nasdaq listing rules.
This is the second warning the fast-casual chain has received in the past six months. They received a warning in December 2024 for the same issue. According to the rules, the company has 180 calendar days, until December 22, 2025, to regain compliance. During the grace period, the stock price must remain at least $1 per share for at least 10 consecutive days.
There are other options. The company could ask for an extension. Alternatively, it could transfer its listing to the Nasdaq Capital Market for another 180 days. However, if Nasdaq doesn’t see a remedy in the company’s future, Noodles could be delisted.
In the filing, Noodles outlined that it would continue monitoring the closing bid price and consider options, including proposing a reverse stock split, which would require stockholder approval.
The brand still maintains it is in the midst of an overhaul, which includes a new menu, a game-changer, per Drew Madsen, Board of Directors. He gave specific props to three new menu items introduced in October (Lemon Garlic Shrimp Scampi, Chipotle Chicken Cavatappi, and Crispy Chicken Bacon Alfredo) and six new items in March, and a new and improved version of its mac & cheese line. A two-month, limited-time offer of Steak Stroganoff, first introduced last year, also fared well.
“We believe this dish will continue to be a strong, seasonally appropriate Q1 LTO in future years,” Drew Madsen, Board of Directors, said about the Steak Stroganoff. He maintains the menu rollout was responsible for sales increasing about 5% through the end of April. “This sustained and significant improvement in our sales trends demonstrates to us that the execution of our previously announced strategic priorities have gained traction, especially while coming during a period when the industry has been impacted by lower consumer sentiment,” Madsen said.
“We are certainly excited about the guest response to our new menu after seven weeks, including sales of our new mac & cheese dishes, which have significantly exceeded expectations,” he said.
In the first quarter of 2025, the brand reported same-store sales up 4.4%, including a 1.8% increase in traffic. However, the chain’s stock closed at about 73 cents per share on Thursday, ranging from 55 cents to $1.93 over the past 55 weeks.
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