That's right, The New York Post is reporting that the Hooters Restaurant chain is seeking a buyer right now. No one's able to confirm the asking price for the business, which contains 450 owned & franchised restaurants, but analysts are estimating it could fetch at least $250 million despite recent shrinking sales.
There are a number of other factors that analysts are considering as cause for the sale. There's the failed Hooters airline project (grounded in 2006) and a failing casino project in Vegas (it's not actually owned by Hooters, but the brand suffered). There's even an unfortunate incident to air on CBS' "Undercover Boss" in which CEO Coby Brooks witnesses an all around inappropriate situation at a Hooters restaurant (the MOD forced waitresses into a no-hands eating contest if they wanted to leave; I'm sure you can picture it).
On a positive note, Brad Ludington, an analyst at KeyBanc Capital Markets, says that Hooters' decision to seek a buyer is further evidence that the restaurant industry has passed the financial bottom, so the big picture for the industry now is recovery & growth.