Welcome!
Welcome to the March Jack in the Box STNL update!
Each month I'll be covering news and information of interest to Jack in the Box STNL owners to help them make the best decisions for their investments. Each update will cover corporate news, stock price updates, a selection of recent sales by state, an “Investors Corner” with relevant personal finance news, and a “Grab Bag” section that covers an interesting aspect of the Jack in the Box brand.
I'm always available to provide a quarterly no-cost, no-obligation Broker Opinion of Value (BOV) for your property. I personally make a habit to update my investment portfolio each quarter; doing so helps me achieve peace of mind and I sleep better each night because of it. I'm happy to do it for you as well.
I hope you enjoy this March edition of the Jack in the Box STNL update. I look forward to your comments and communicating with you soon. Have a great rest of your month!
Best,
Michael H. Young
[email protected]
Investment Advisor
AiCRE Partners
Summary
Corporate News - “The Hot Mess” at the shareholders meeting: Ahead of the February 27 annual shareholders meeting, activist investors called for the resignation of the Board Chairman David Goebel, a seventeen year veteran of the QSR industry. Read below for how the proxy fight panned out.
Stock Price Update - JACK shares are trading at $13.69 per share, down 63% from a year ago. Most analysts still recommend a “HOLD” on JACK.
Recent Jack in the Box Sales Comps - Five Jack in the Box properties have sold so far this year. Read below for average cap rates and states with the most recent sales.
Investor’s Corner - There's a lot of hype going on with AI, and it's easy to feel like you're being left behind. Access the Wall Street Journal article below to read about how some retirees are using AI to help with tax preparation.
“Grab Bag” - Jack in the Box is celebrating their 75th Anniversary with new menu items. Take a look below to see what Jack in the Box is doing to win over customers. Will it be enough??
CORPORATE NEWS
Enter “The Hot Mess”
Jack in the Box reintroduced the iconic Hot Mess Burger for its 75th Anniversary celebration, and just in time for “The Hot Mess“ proxy fight at the annual shareholders meeting.
How did we get here?
Getting “Jack on Track” by closing 200 restaurants (ouch!) - “Jack on Track” program announces 200 restaurant closures by YE2026. (Jack in the Box, Apr. 2025)
Sold Del Taco at a loss of $466M - Purchased at $585M, sold for $119M. (Nation’s Restaurant News, Dec. 2025)
Currently carrying $1.6B in debt - Down from $3.0BN in 2025. (Seeking Alpha, Feb. 2026)
Q1 Revenue Slips 5.8% - Same-store sales plummet and margins are getting thinner, but corporate is anticipating stabilized revenues for the rest of 2026. (Verdict Food Service, Feb. 2026)
Last in burger rankings - Jack in the Box earns the ignoble recognition for the worst burger out of 21 restaurants. (Tasting Table, Dec. 2025)
Enter “The Hot Mess”
Biglari Capital Corp. calls for the resignation of Board Chairman David Goebels - “Mr. Goebel should be embarrassed and ashamed of the company's performance. He should have resigned years ago instead of playing politics and trying to hold on, wasting money for personal gain while relying on abstain votes, ISS, and index funds. He has no credibility with active investors.“ (PR Newswire, Feb. 2026)
Jack in the Box re-elects board, but chair [Goebel] will retire - The full board gets re-elected despite activist efforts, but the Board Chairman steps down. (Restaurant Dive, Mar. 2026)
Activist investor pressure will likely continue - Activist investors might have lost Round 1, but they’re not going anywhere anytime soon. Expect them to continue pressing the board for changes to turnaround Jack in the Box’s fortunes. (Restaurant Dive, Feb. 2026)
STOCK PRICE
63% loss from a year ago
On February 10, 2026, Jack in the Box Inc. (JACK) was trading at $20.70/share. As of March 10, 2026, JACK is now at $13.69 per share, a 33% loss from last month and a 63% loss from a year ago. Ouch!
Out of the six most recent analyst recommendations, most recommend a “HOLD” strategy while Goldman Sachs recommends “SELL”. This is the same as February’s recommendations.
Goldman Sachs recommends “SELL”
RECENT SALE COMPS
Most locations trading above 6%
Jack in the Box operates in 21 states plus Guam and Mexico. Below are some recent comps by state where accurate data is available. Red text shows new sales comps since last month’s report. The average cap rate for sold properties is 6.29%.
State | Sale Date | Sale Price | Price/SF | NOI | Cap Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AZ | 01/05/26 | $2.10M | $731.71 | Vacant | Vacant |
CA | 02/17/26 | $2.88M | $1,046.10 | $144K | 5.00% |
CO | 12/19/25 | $2.20M | $930.23 | $179K | 8.14% |
NV | 12/15/25 | $2.16M | $749.15 | $120K | 5.54% |
NM | 09/26/24 | $2.85M | $1,104.60 | $167K | 5.88% |
NC | 05/29/25 | $2.10M | $938.34 | $111K | 5.30% |
OR | 12/15/25 | $1.79M | $626.75 | $143K | 8.00% |
TN | 11/21/24 | $1.59M | $449.28 | $99K | 6.23% |
TX | 12/02/25 | $1.65M | $714.28 | $99K | 6.00% |
WA | 03/04/26 | $1.00M | $673.85 | $65K | 6.50% |
Sales since January 1, 2026
So far, five (5) Jack in the Box properties have changed hands since the start of the year. California, Texas, Arizona and Washington represent the top four most numerous Jack in the Boxes by count, so it's not surprising that sales took place in those states.
Not surprising that sales took place in CA, TX, AZ and WA.
INVESTOR’S CORNER
Leveraging AI for Tax Preparation
As a benefit to my subscribers, I post unlocked Wall Street Journal articles so you don’t need to subscribe to the WSJ to read the article.
Using AI for tax preparation is a great place to start for testing how the power of AI can help with our everyday tasks.
Tax rules and regulations can be complicated, and it’s always good to have a “second set of eyes” when making calculations; here is where AI can be a great partner for tax preparation.
Make sure you double check any output AI gives you since it can sometimes provide incorrect answers.
Read the WSJ on “WSJ Readers Share How They Are Using AI for Tax Prep“ to see how some readers use AI for:
Deciding when and how to move funds between Roth and regular IRA accounts.
How to value items donated for tax deduction purposes.
Understanding IRS tax forms that don’t come with explanations.
And a few more examples, click on the link for more.
GRAB BAG
Celebrating 75 years with new items
It's never over till it's over, operations must continue…
Despite the recent drama at the annual shareholder’s meeting, I'm heartened to see Jack in the Box leaning into celebrating their 75th Anniversary with the reintroduction of the Hot Mess Burger (with onions rings, jalapeños and Monterey Jack cheese), the Chicken Supreme Sandwich (with a wheat brioche bun!), and new items like their Matcha Iced Latte and Jibbis, the collectible doll.
My Hot Mess Burger, purchased in Concord, CA
The Hot Mess 1989 Version
I miss the 1990’s, a time I didn’t have to worry about planning road trips and making sure a public bathroom was accessible every hour or so, when I could down five beers in succession and still hold a conversation. Oh, how times have changed.
This 1989 commercial that introduced The Hot Mess burger reminds me of how edgy Jack in the Box was at the time and why it felt so cool to be associated with the brand.
The Updated 2026 Version
Fast forward 27 years and it’s good to know others reminisce about the ‘90’s like I do. I’m cheering for this nostalgia to bring old customers back and entice the new Gen Z crowd to see what they missed out on. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for 2026 and hope Jack in the Box can stage a comeback.
Thank you for reading to the end!
Stay tuned, we will be posting additional updates and relevant information related to Jack in the Box real estate properties.
Until next time,
Michael H. Young
[email protected]
Investment Advisor
AiCRE Partners