Cracker Barrel shares drop as logo change blowback dents restaurant traffic

By Juveria Tabassum

Sept 18 (Reuters) - Cracker Barrel CBRL.O shares fell nearly 6% on Thursday, after social media backlash around the restaurant chain's short-lived decision to change its decades-old logo hurt customer traffic and prompted it to scrap store remodel plans.

The company was forced to return to its "Old Timer" logo after facing criticism from conservatives, including U.S. President Donald Trump, for removing the image of an overalls-clad man known as "Uncle Herschel" leaning against a barrel. Its shares have fallen nearly 16% since the logo change was first announced on August 19.

The new logo stood for about a week, and the company had begun rolling out a more modern store layout at four restaurants, but has now dropped the plan, CEO Julie Felss Masino said on a post-earnings call on Wednesday.

The company, which reported quarterly results after markets closed on Wednesday, is reverting to its "Old-Timer" signage at the four locations and more traditional interiors, Masino said.

Store traffic fell about 8% since the new logo was launched, compared with about 1% decline in the first half of the month, finance chief Craig Pommells said. Traffic is expected to be down 7% to 8% for the current quarter, but improve in the latter half of the year, he said.

"This is a bit of an unusual situation, and we've factored all of that in our guidance," Pommells said.

Cracker Barrel planned to modernize its brand and stores to rekindle demand as consumers tempered spending on dining out due to high menu prices and sticky inflation.

It forecast fiscal 2026 total revenue between $3.35 billion and $3.45 billion, below analysts' estimate of $3.48 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

The fallout from the rebranding pushback "has been severe with no sign of let-up", but Cracker Barrel's efforts to bring back popular menu items and ramp up marketing could drive some improvement, said Truist Securities analyst Jake Bartlett.

Separately, Sardar Biglari, a long-time activist investor in Cracker Barrel, has launched a fresh proxy battle urging shareholders to vote to withhold the reelection of CEO Masino and board member Gilbert Davila at the company's annual meeting in November following the logo change blowback.

Biglari, under his firms including Biglari Holdings BHa.N and The Lion Fund, owns 654,141 shares in Cracker Barrel. That represents 2.9% of the outstanding shares, according to a regulatory filing. Cracker Barrel has a market capitalization of about $1.10 billion.

Cracker Barrel did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment.