🔥 Trending Cracker Barrel Faces Major Changes: Sales and Closures

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBRL) is currently undergoing significant restructuring efforts to improve profitability and reduce debt. These efforts primarily involve divesting its Maple Street Biscuit Company brand and implementing sale-leaseback deals ¹⁷.

Maple Street Biscuit Company Divestiture

Cracker Barrel has decided to exit its Maple Street Biscuit Company business, which represented 2% of its annual revenue ². This strategic move aims to sharpen Cracker Barrel's focus on its core brand ⁵.

• Sale of Locations: Cracker Barrel is selling 35 Maple Street Biscuit Company locations to Biscuit Belly LLC ⁵. These locations, including the original San Marco restaurant and others in Point Meadows and Fleming Island, are expected to remain open, though their names may eventually change ⁸.
• Closures: The remaining 16 Maple Street Biscuit Company locations are being closed ⁵.
• Financial Impact: The company anticipates incurring charges of $43 million to $47 million from exiting the Maple Street Biscuit Company business ³. This divestiture is expected to boost Cracker Barrel's adjusted EBITDA for fiscal year 2027 ³.

Sale-Leaseback Deals

As part of its restructuring plan, Cracker Barrel has completed a sale-leaseback deal involving 26 company-owned locations ⁷. This move is also aimed at reducing debt levels ⁷.

Financial Performance and Stock Activity

While undergoing these changes, Cracker Barrel expects to meet or exceed the high end of its full-year revenue outlook ⁹. However, institutional investors like Bessemer Group Inc. have lessened their holdings in Cracker Barrel stock, with Bessemer Group Inc. selling 48,400 shares in the first quarter of 2026, reducing their stake by 42.2% ⁶.

Recent Health Inspection

In a separate incident, a Cracker Barrel location in Panama City, Florida (#749), was cited for six high-severity violations during an inspection on July 21, 2026. These violations included employees failing to demonstrate allergen awareness, a lapse linked to numerous emergency room visits and deaths annually in the United States ⁴.