Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. (Nasdaq: CBRL), a well-known restaurant and retail chain specializing in homestyle food and unique merchandise, reported its third-quarter fiscal 2025 results for the period ending May 2, 2025. The company is positioned in a stable condition, showing signs of improvement following a transformation plan aimed at enhancing its operations and customer engagement.

For the third quarter, Cracker Barrel’s total revenue was $821.1 million, representing an increase of 0.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Restaurant revenue increased by 1.2% to $679.3 million, while retail revenue experienced a decline of 2.7% to $141.8 million. Comparable store restaurant sales rose by 1%, while comparable store retail sales decreased by 3.8%. The company implemented a pricing strategy that resulted in an overall pricing increase of approximately 4.9%, composed of 1.5% carryforward pricing from fiscal 2024 and 3.4% new pricing initiated in fiscal 2025.

In terms of costs, the total cost of goods sold for the quarter was 30.1% of total revenue, slightly up from 30% in the prior year quarter. Restaurant cost of goods sold was recorded at 26.2% of restaurant revenue, compared to 25.9% the previous year. Labor and related expenses accounted for 37.1% of total revenue, down from 37.8% the year prior, attributed to improvements in productivity and menu pricing, partially offset by a wage inflation rate of approximately 1.9%. Other operating expenses increased to 25.3% of revenue from 24.5% in the prior year, primarily due to elevated advertising expenses and depreciation.

Cracker Barrel reported a GAAP net income of $12.6 million, an increase compared to the $9.2 million loss in the same quarter last year. GAAP earnings per diluted share increased to $0.56, up from a loss of $0.41 in the prior year quarter. Adjusted earnings per diluted share were $0.58, down from $0.88 the previous year. Adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter was $48.1 million, reflecting a 0.4% increase from the previous year, with adjusted EBITDA margin stable at 5.9% of total revenue.

Looking ahead, Cracker Barrel raised its fiscal 2025 outlook for adjusted EBITDA, now expecting it to fall between $215 million and $225 million, an increase from the previous guidance of $210 million to $220 million. Total revenue expectations remain steady at $3.45 billion to $3.5 billion for the fiscal year. The company projects commodity inflation in the mid-2% range, with hourly wage inflation also expected to be in the mid-2% range. Furthermore, capital expenditures are anticipated to be approximately $160 million to $170 million, updated from $160 million to $180 million.

The Board of Directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, payable on August 13, 2025, to shareholders of record on July 18, 2025. Cracker Barrel’s financial performance in the third quarter reflects a continued effort to improve metrics while navigating the challenges posed by the current economic environment and operational adjustments.