CKE RESTAURANTS SELLS 11 HARDEE’S, COMPLETES REFRANCHISING PROGRAM

JEFFERSON CITY AND COLUMBIA, MO. — Carpinteria, Calif.-based CKE Restaurants Inc. has sold 11 Hardee’s restaurants located in the Jefferson City and Columbia markets. Rising Stars LLC has purchased the units for an undisclosed amount. In addition to the acquisitions, Rising Stars has committed to build a minimum of three new Hardee’s restaurants in the two markets over the next 5 years. The transaction was brokered by Franchise Resale Consultants, d/b/a Praetorian Group. The sale marks the completion of the strategic refranchising program that CKE Restaurants originally announced in April 2007. Under the refranchising program, CKE Restaurants sold a total of 238 Hardee’s units to franchisees, and secured commitments for 115 new franchise restaurants under development agreements for those markets. The company sold 38 more units than it had originally announced it would refranchise. CKE Restaurants currently owns 477 Hardee’s restaurants and 415 Carl’s Jr. restaurants. To date, for fiscal 2009, CKE Restaurants has entered into a total of 20 franchise development agreements representing commitments for 380 restaurants. The principals of the franchisee purchasing the 11 Hardee’s restaurants currently own and operate more than 100 Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s restaurants throughout the United States.