Fast-food chain closing up to 200 'underperforming' locations

Jack in the Box announced that it plans to close 150 to 200 of its restaurants as it looks to boost the fast-food company’s financial performance.

The company said Wednesday that the restaurants in the planned "block closure program" were ones that were "underperforming" and, in many cases, several decades old. 

"Our actions today focus on three main areas: addressing our balance sheet to accelerate cash flow and pay down debt, while preserving growth-oriented capital investments related to technology and restaurant reimage; closing underperforming restaurants to position ourselves for consistent net unit growth and competitive unit economics; and, an overall return to simplicity for the Jack in the Box business model and investor story," Jack in the Box CEO Lance Tucker said. 

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Roughly 80 to 120 of the total restaurants it plans to shutter under the program will close their doors for good before the end of the year, according to Jack in the Box.

The rest of the underperforming restaurants on the chopping block will stop operations "upon respective franchise agreement termination dates," the company said.

"This program does not include the expected 1.5% to 2.0% of system unit closures for FY 2025, and an ongoing annual closure rate thereafter of approximately 1% of system units beginning in FY 2026," Jack in the Box said.

The company anticipates "consistent, positive net unit growth" after closing the 150 to 200 underperforming locations. 

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The block closure plan is part of the "JACK on Track" initiative that Jack in the Box unveiled. 

In addition to the restaurant closures, Jack in the Box said that the strategy includes other measures meant to help the company see "sustainable growth" in the coming years through improvements in its financial performance and balance sheet. 

Jack in the Box is looking at a possible divestment and other "strategic alternatives" for the Del Taco brand as well, according to its announcement. It has owned the chain since 2022.

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Jack in the Box’s current store count includes roughly 2,200 namesake restaurants and 600 Del Taco restaurants. 

The company said preliminary second-quarter same-store sales for Jack in the Box posted a 4.4% decline. Del Taco experienced a decline of 3.6%.

The company is slated to release its final second-quarter financial results in mid-May. 

For its 2025 fiscal year, Jack in the Box forecasted Wednesday that the company will see operating earnings per share of $5.05 to $5.40, not including any effects of its JACK on Track initiative.

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It also foresaw its namesake business having a "low-to-mid-single digits" decline in same-store sales compared to the prior fiscal year.

Tucker became Jack in the Box’s permanent CEO in late March. He had been leading the company on an interim basis since the former chief executive, Darin Harris, left the company for a job "outside of the restaurant industry" in late February.