CBRL: Song Of The South And The Persian Buffett
Anybody who has travelled in the south knows about Cracker Barrel Old Country Restaurant (CBRL) because they’re everywhere. I’ve followed the stock ever since I drove from Las Vegas to Alexandria, Virginia in the Summer of 2010 and discovered its ubiquity there. Another interesting fact about CBRL is that almost 10% of its shares are owned by Sardar Biglari – the 46 year old Persian Buffett. Biglari is the Chairman of the publicly traded Biglari Holdings (BH) which he has modelled on Berkshire Hathaway.
While I’ve long followed the stock, I’ve never purchased shares until today. That’s because the stock has been torched of late and I think there is value in them heading into its FY4Q23 earnings report Wednesday morning. In addition to Cracker Barrel, CBRL owns another chain that they are trying to grow called The Maple Street Biscuit Company. It also pays a $1.30 quarterly dividend which works out to about 7% annually at the current price. With the stock being so beat up heading into tomorrow morning’s report, anything decent could spur a relief rally.