Cracker Barrel Old Country Store (NASDAQ:CBRL) Inc reported a drop in first quarter revenue and a sharp fall in operating income.
The company said in the three months ended October 27, revenue fell 1.9% to $823.8 million with comparable store restaurant sales down 0.5% and comparable store retail sales decreasing 8.1%.
GAAP operating income for the first quarter more than halved to $11.4 million from $23.6 million while GAAP earnings per diluted share were $0.25.
Cracker Barrel president and chief executive officer Julie Masino said: “We were pleased that we delivered sequential monthly improvements in our comparable store traffic performance during the first quarter.”
“This improved trend was largely driven by the actions we took to improve the effectiveness of our marketing and our emphasis on the guest experience.”
“We will continue to focus on these initiatives along with operational excellence, and we believe these efforts will resonate with guests and will support improved performance in the remainder of the fiscal year and beyond.”
Looking ahead, the firm forecast financial 2024 total revenue of $3.4 billion to $3.5 billion.