8-K

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE
SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): April 10, 2003

PANERA BREAD COMPANY

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware	000-19253	04-2723701
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation)	(Commission File Number)	(IRS Employer Identification No.)

6710 Clayton Road
Richmond Heights, MO	63117
(Address of principal executive offices)	(Zip Code)

314-633-7100
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Not Applicable
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

Item 9. Regulation FD Disclosure.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EX-99.1 Press Release

     In accordance with General Instruction B.2. of Form 8-K, the following information shall not be deemed to be “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, nor shall it be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Panera Bread Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise this information. Attached as Exhibit 99.1, and incorporated herein by reference, is a copy of the registrant’s press release dated April 10, 2003, announcing its comparable store sales for the four and twelve weeks ended March 22, 2003.

     Attached and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety as Exhibit 99.1 is a copy of the press release.

SIGNATURE

     Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

PANERA BREAD COMPANY

By:  /s/ Mark E. Hood                                        
        Name: Mark E. Hood
        Title: Senior Vice President, Finance and
        Administration, Acting CFO

Date: April 10, 2003

EXHIBIT INDEX

Exhibit No.	Exhibit
99.1	Panera Press Release, dated April 10, 2003.

EX-99.1 3 c76079exv99w1.htm EX-99.1 PRESS RELEASE

PRESS RELEASE
Contact:	Mark E. Hood SVP, Finance & Administration (314-633-7255)

Panera Bread Reiterates Confidence in Q1 Guidance and Reports System-Wide Comparable
Bakery-Cafe Sales Decreased 1.1% for the Four Weeks Ended March 22, 2003

St. Louis, MO, April 10, 2003 — Panera Bread Company (Nasdaq:PNRA) today reported that system-wide comparable bakery-cafe sales decreased 1.1% for the four weeks ended March 22, 2003. The breakdown between company-owned and franchised bakery-cafes is as follows:

	For the 4 weeks			For the 12 weeks
	ended March 22, 2003			ended March 22, 2003
Company-owned		-1.3	%		-0.8	%
Franchised		-1.0	%		-0.2	%
Total System		-1.1	%		-0.4	%

Sales during the period February 23rd to March 22nd continued to be impacted by more difficult winter weather during 2003 compared to 2002.

Average system-wide weekly sales (excluding the one specialty bakery-cafe and closed locations) remained flat at $34,940 for the four weeks ended March 22, 2003 and March 23, 2002.

Based on the continued strength of its development activity, the Company reiterated confidence in its ability to achieve first quarter earnings per share of $0.24 (up 41%) and full year earnings per share guidance of $0.99 (up 36%).

Panera Bread Company owns and franchises bakery-cafes under the Panera Bread and Saint Louis Bread Co. names. The company is a leader in the emerging specialty bread/cafe category due to its unique bread combined with a quick, casual dining experience. Additional information is available on the company’s website, www.panerabread.com.

Matters discussed in this news release, including any discussion or impact, express or implied, on the Company’s anticipated growth, operating results and future earnings per share contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The statements identified by the words “believe”, “positioned”, “estimate”, “project”, “target”, “continue”, “will”, “intend”, “expect”, “future”, “anticipates”, and similar expressions express management’s present belief, expectations or intentions regarding the Company’s future performance. The Company’s actual results could differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements due to known and unknown risks and uncertainties and could be negatively impacted by a number of factors. These factors include but are not limited to the following: the availability of sufficient capital to the Company and the developers party to franchise development agreements with the Company; variations in the number and timing of bakery-cafe openings; public acceptance of new bakery-cafes; competition; national and regional weather conditions; changes in restaurant operating costs, particularly food and labor; and other factors that may affect retailers in general. These and other risks are discussed from time to time in the Company’s SEC reports, including its Form 10-KA for the year ended December 28, 2002.

-----END PRIVACY-ENHANCED MESSAGE-----

EX-99.1

exv99w1