The Keg Royalties Income Fund announces Special Cash Distribution

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Dec. 19, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Keg Royalties Income Fund (the "Fund") (TSX: KEG.UN) today announced that a Special Cash Distribution of $0.08 per unit has been declared and is payable to unitholders of record as at December 31, 2023. The Special Cash Distribution will be paid to unitholders on January 31, 2024 and treated as an eligible dividend that will be included in the Fund's December 31, 2023 year-end for tax purposes.

"The strong same store sales growth delivered by The Keg so far this year, coupled with the expected sales from a 53^rd week of operation, generated significant incremental royalty income to the Fund", said Mr. Kip Woodward, Chairman of the Fund. "We are pleased to share this incremental income with the Fund's unitholders, in the form of this Special Cash Distribution".

KRL's fiscal year end falls on the Sunday closest to December 31^st, in any year, and as a result of the floating year-end date, approximately every sixth fiscal year contains 53 operating weeks. The 2023 fiscal year contains 53 weeks of operation.

The Fund is a limited purpose, open-ended trust established under the laws of the Province of Ontario that, through The Keg Rights Limited Partnership (the "Partnership"), a subsidiary of the Fund, owns certain trademarks and other related intellectual property used by Keg Restaurants Ltd. ("KRL"). In exchange for use of those trademarks, KRL pays the Fund a royalty of 4% of gross sales of Keg restaurants included in the royalty pool.

The Fund (TSX: KEG.UN) is a limited purpose, open-ended trust established under the laws of the Province of Ontario that, through The Keg Rights Limited Partnership, owns certain trademarks and other related intellectual property used by Keg Restaurants Ltd. ("KRL"). In exchange for use of those trademarks, KRL pays the Fund a royalty of 4% of gross sales of Keg restaurants included in the royalty pool.

With approximately 10,000 employees, over 100 restaurants and annual System Sales approaching $700 million, Vancouver-based KRL is the leading operator and franchisor of steakhouse restaurants in Canada and has a substantial presence in select regional markets in the United States. KRL continues to operate The Keg restaurant system and expand that system through the addition of both corporate and franchised Keg steakhouses. KRL has been named the number one restaurant company to work for in Canada in the latest edition of Forbes "Canada's Best Employers 2023" survey, securing third place in the overall ranking across all industries in the country.

This press release may contain certain "forward looking" statements reflecting The Keg Royalties Income Fund's current expectations in the casual dining segment of the restaurant food industry. Investors are cautioned that all forward looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including those relating to the Keg's ability to continue to realize historical same store sales growth, changes in market and existing competition, new competitive developments, and potential downturns in economic conditions generally. Additional information on these and other potential factors that could affect the Fund's financial results are detailed in documents filed from time to time with the provincial securities commissions in Canada.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, which may be made only by means of the prospectus, nor shall there be any sale of the Fund units in any state, province or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any state, province or jurisdiction. The Keg Royalties Income Fund units have not been, and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an application for exemption from the registration requirement under U.S. securities laws.

The Trustees of the Fund have approved the contents of this press release.