showing the working

← Cracker Barrel Old Country Store

The business behind the dividend

MeasureCBRLMedianFormula
Return on equity10.0%10.6%Net income ÷ shareholders’ equity
Return on capital employed5.8%10.0%Operating income ÷ (equity + total debt)
Owner earnings$9.47m$120.90mNet income + depreciation & amortisation − capital expenditure
Free cash flow$59.76m$155.08mOperating cash flow − capital expenditure
Operating margin1.6%14.3%Operating income ÷ revenue
Net margin1.3%10.1%Net income ÷ revenue
Debt to equity1.05x0.73xTotal debt ÷ shareholders’ equity
Interest cover3.19x4.22xOperating income ÷ interest expense
Current ratio0.50x1.55xCurrent assets ÷ current liabilities
Long-term debt to working capitalLong-term debt ÷ (current assets − current liabilities)
Cash conversion4.72x1.66xOperating cash flow ÷ net income
Accruals-8.0%-3.1%(Net income − operating cash flow) ÷ total assets

Not computed here: Long-term debt to working capital — why a blank is not a zero.

Ten years of it

The same measures, for every year the filings support. One year is a fact; a row is a business.

Measure2025202420232022202120202019201820172016Median
Return on equity10.0%9.3%20.5%25.8%38.4%-7.8%36.9%42.6%37.1%36.0%25.8%
Return on capital employed5.8%4.9%13.4%16.4%37.0%7.6%28.2%29.9%33.2%30.3%16.4%
Operating margin1.6%1.3%3.5%4.7%13.0%4.1%9.2%9.7%10.7%9.6%4.7%
Net margin1.3%1.2%2.9%4.0%9.0%-1.3%7.3%8.2%6.9%6.5%4.0%
Debt to equity1.05x1.08x0.86x0.83x0.49x2.27x0.66x0.69x0.73x0.76x0.76x
Current ratio0.50x0.61x0.58x0.63x0.76x1.43x0.62x0.84x0.95x0.96x0.63x
Cash conversion4.72x4.13x2.53x1.56x1.19x1.62x1.34x1.59x1.43x1.59x

How it compares in consumer discretionary

Among the 169 consumer discretionary companies here measured on free cash flow, Cracker Barrel Old Country Store pays out less than 72 of them. The median for that group is 33.1%, against this company’s 38.7%.

Closest on free cash flow

Same sector and same denominator, so the figures are comparable. All 197 in consumer discretionary →