UPDATE 1-Sonic Q3 profit tops Street

*Q3 EPS ex-items 24 cents vs est 20 cents

* Q3 revenue falls 10 pct

* Q3 same store sales fall 5.4 pct

June 23 (Reuters) - Drive-in restaurant chain Sonic Corp (SONC.O) reported a third-quarter profit that beat market expectations, helped by lower operating expenses and refranchising of partner drive-ins.

For the quarter ended May 31, the Oklahoma City-based company posted a profit of $16.8 million, or 27 cents a share, compared with $17.2 million, or 28 cents a share, last year.

Excluding items, the company earned 24 cents a share. Revenue fell 10 percent to $191.9 million.

Analysts on average were expecting Sonic to earn 20 cents a share, excluding items, on revenue of $179.4 million, according to Reuters Estimates.

The refranchising of 177 partner drive-ins during the quarter boosted revenue by $10.8 million.

These transactions increased the mix of franchised drive-ins to about 86 percent of the chain versus 80 percent at the beginning of the fiscal year, the company said.