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Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. CBRL reported preliminary results for first-quarter fiscal 2025.
CEO Julie Masino said that the company's strong start to the fiscal year can be attributed to the success of its ongoing strategic transformation plan. Masino noted that CBRL’s results met internal expectations, with comparable store sales and traffic exceeding those of the broader casual dining industry. She was confident that the company is on a solid path toward growth and value creation for its shareholders.
CBRL’s Preliminary Q1 Results
The company expects first-quarter fiscal 2025 revenues to be nearly $845.1 million, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $824 million. On the other hand, comparable store sales in the quarter rose 2.9% year over year, outpacing the Black Box Intelligence Casual Dining Index by nearly 290 basis points. However, comparable store retail sales declined 1.6% year over year.
The company expects GAAP and adjusted earnings per share to be nearly 22 cents and 45 cents, respectively. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for adjusted earnings is pegged at 40 cents per share. CBRL expects adjusted EBITDA to be approximately $45.8 million, up 4.3% year over year.
CBRL Reiterates FY 2025 Outlook
For fiscal 2025, the company continues to expect revenues in the range of $3.4-$3.5 billion compared with the fiscal 2024’s reported figure of $3.47 billion. Adjusted EBITDA is anticipated to be between $200 million and $215 million.
Management continues to predict commodity inflation to be in the range of 2% to 3% compared with the prior year. Hourly wage inflation is anticipated to be 3% to 4% year over year.
Coming to store openings, CBRL aims to open three to four new Maple Street Biscuit company units and two new Cracker Barrel stores. Capital expenditures are envisioned in the range of $160-$180 million.
In the past three months, shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have gained 18.5% compared with the industry’s growth of 8.3%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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