Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Cracker Barrel (CBRL) to Post Q4 Earnings: What's in Store?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. (CBRL - Free Report) is scheduled to report fourth-quarter fiscal 2019 results on Sep 17. In the last reported quarter, the company’s earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2%. It also delivered a bottom-line beat in three of the trailing four quarters.

How Are Estimates Faring?

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at $2.43. In the year-ago quarter, the company had registered $2.19 per share. Notably, the company’s earnings estimate for the quarter has been stable over the past 30 days. In third-quarter fiscal 2019, Cracker Barrel’s bottom line rose 3% on a year-over-year basis.

For revenues, the consensus mark is pinned at nearly $774.4 million, suggesting a 4.5% decrease from the prior-year quarter reported figure.
    
Let’s delve deeper to find out how the company’s top and bottom line will shape up in the upcoming quarterly release.

Factors at Play

Cracker Barrel’s fourth-quarter fiscal 2019 results are likely to benefit from robust comparable restaurant sales. The company’s effort to increase off-premise sales will also provide a boost to the quarterly results. Additionally, Cracker Barrel is continuously focusing on rejuvenating its menu, which is the backbone of the company’s riveting growth potential. Expansion of units, extensive marketing efforts, seasonal promotions, enhanced focus on retail business along with cost-saving initiatives bode well for the company.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues at the Restaurants segment is likely to increase 3.7% year over year. However, Retail Cracker Barrel revenues are likely to decline 0.7%.  Even though comps are likely to consistently register solid growth, a decline in traffic remains a major concern. In the third-quarter fiscal 2019, traffic declined 1.8%. 

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

What Does the Zacks Model Unveil?

Our proven model does not show that Cracker Barrel is likely to beat earnings in fourth-quarter fiscal 2019. This is because a stock needs to have both — a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) — for this to happen. Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) or 5 (Strong Sell) stocks are best avoided, especially if they have a negative Earnings ESP. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Cracker Barrel has an Earnings ESP of 0.00% and a Zacks Rank #3. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Peer Releases

Darden (DRI - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2019 results, wherein earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate but revenues lagged the same. Adjusted earnings of $1.76 per share outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.73. The bottom line also increased 26.6% year over year on higher revenues.

Domino’s (DPZ - Free Report) reported mixed second-quarter 2019 financial numbers, wherein earnings exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate but revenues missed the same. Adjusted earnings of $2.19 per share outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.00. The metric also increased 19% on a year-over-year basis. The bottom-line improvement was driven by higher net income and lower diluted share count as a result of share repurchases.

Chipotle (CMG - Free Report) reported better-than-expected results in the second quarter of 2019. Its adjusted earnings of $3.99 per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.69 by 8.1%. The bottom line also grew 39% from the year-ago quarter number backed by solid revenues and strong operating margins.

Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple-Digit Profit Potential

The biotech sector is projected to surge beyond $775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases. They’re also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases.

Zacks has just released Century of Biology: 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance. Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of +98%, +119% and +164% in as little as 1 month. The stocks in this report could perform even better.

See these 7 breakthrough stocks now>>

Published in