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• A mini-Berkshire Hathaway, heavily invested in restaurant brands like Steak 'n Shake and Cracker Barrel, plus insurance.
• Like a smaller, more activist-oriented Berkshire Hathaway, with a significant focus on restaurant chains.

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• Steak n Shake Restaurants: Operates and franchises fast-casual dining establishments specializing in steakburgers, fries, and hand-dipped milkshakes.
• Western Sizzlin Restaurants: Operates and franchises buffet-style restaurants offering steaks and a variety of American cuisine.
• Commercial Trucking Insurance: Provides property and casualty insurance policies primarily for businesses in the commercial trucking industry.
• Investment Management: Manages a diversified portfolio of publicly traded equity securities, acting as a holding company for various investments.

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Biglari Holdings Inc. (symbol: BH) is a diversified holding company. Based on its 2023 annual report (10-K), its primary revenue-generating segments that sell to other companies are its Oil and Gas Operations (SPM Flow Control) and its Insurance Operations (First Guard Insurance Company). These segments collectively generated higher revenues than its Restaurant Operations (Steak 'n Shake and Western Sizzlin), which primarily sell to individuals.

Therefore, Biglari Holdings primarily sells to other companies.

Due to the competitive nature of its businesses, Biglari Holdings Inc. does not publicly disclose the specific names of its major corporate customers. However, its business-to-business (B2B) operations serve the following categories of companies:

• Oil and Gas Operations (SPM Flow Control): This segment provides well service and flow control products and services primarily to companies operating in the oil and gas industry. Major customers typically include:
  • Oil and gas exploration and production (E&P) companies.
  • Drilling contractors.
  • Oilfield service companies.
  These customers encompass a broad range of public and private entities within the energy sector, but specific names are not publicly disclosed by Biglari.
• Insurance Operations (First Guard Insurance Company): This segment specializes in providing commercial trucking insurance. Its customers are businesses within the commercial trucking industry, including:
  • Small to medium-sized trucking companies.
  • Owner-operators of commercial trucks.
  • Trucking fleets.
  These are typically private and smaller public trucking businesses across the United States.

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Sardar Biglari, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Sardar Biglari is the founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of Biglari Holdings Inc., a position he has held since 2008. He also founded Biglari Capital Corp. in 2000, which serves as the general partner for private investment partnerships, The Lion Fund, L.P., and The Lion Fund II, L.P. Mr. Biglari gained control of Steak n Shake Co. in 2008, which was subsequently renamed Biglari Holdings Inc. in 2010. At the age of 18, he founded INTX.net, an internet service provider, which he later sold to Internet America in 1999. He became Chairman and CEO of Western Sizzlin Corp. in 2006. An investment he made in Friendly Ice Cream resulted in the company being acquired by a private-equity firm, where the founder profited. Under his leadership, Biglari Holdings has acquired various companies, including Maxim magazine, First Guard Insurance Company, Southern Oil Company, Southern Pioneer Property & Casualty Insurance Company, and Abraxas Petroleum Corporation.

Philip L. Cooley, Vice Chairman

Philip L. Cooley has served as the Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Biglari Holdings Inc. since 2009 and as a director since 2008. Prior to this, he was the Prassel Distinguished Professor of Business at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, from 1985 until his retirement in 2012. He also served as an advisory director of Biglari Capital since 2000. Mr. Cooley previously held the position of Vice Chairman at Western Sizzlin Corp. from 2005 to 2010. He possesses extensive business and investment experience.

Bruce Lewis, Controller

Bruce Lewis has been the Controller and part of senior management at Biglari Holdings Inc. since 2012.

Edmund B. Campbell, III, Executive Chairman of First Guard Insurance Company

Edmund B. Campbell, III, has been a director of Biglari Holdings Inc. since May 2021. He is the founder of First Guard Insurance Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Biglari Holdings, and has served as its Executive Chairman. He was also the Chief Executive Officer of First Guard Insurance Company from 1997 to March 2021 and has over 35 years of experience in the insurance business.

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Key Risks to Biglari Holdings (BH)

1. Dependence on Sardar Biglari and Corporate Governance Concerns: Biglari Holdings is highly dependent on its Chairman and CEO, Sardar Biglari, for all major investment and capital allocation decisions. His beneficial ownership of over 50% of outstanding shares grants him significant control over shareholder matters, including director elections and major transactions. This concentration of control and the specific incentive fee structure for Biglari Capital (Sardar Biglari's investment vehicle) have raised concerns regarding corporate governance and capital allocation that may not always align with the interests of all shareholders.
2. Impact of Investment Performance on Financial Results: As a holding company with significant investment partnerships, Biglari Holdings' reported earnings are substantially affected by the performance and fluctuations in the value of its investments. This can lead to considerable volatility in net earnings, with lower gains from investment partnerships directly impacting the company's profitability and potentially obscuring the underlying operating performance of its diverse businesses.
3. Declining Return on Capital Employed (ROCE) and Competitive Pressures: Biglari Holdings has shown a declining Return on Capital Employed (ROCE), which indicates a decreasing efficiency in generating profits from the capital invested in its business. This trend, coupled with capital employed remaining relatively flat, suggests that the company may not be compounding shareholder wealth effectively and could be at risk of shrinking. Furthermore, its restaurant operations face intense competition from a wide range of industry participants, which can further impact profitability and growth.

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The widespread adoption and expansion of **virtual restaurant concepts and ghost kitchens**. These operations allow competitors to launch and scale food delivery businesses with significantly lower overhead than traditional brick-and-mortar restaurants, intensifying competition for Biglari's restaurant brands (Steak 'n Shake, Western Sizzlin) in the takeout and delivery market and potentially eroding their customer base and profitability.

The increasing use of **AI-driven telematics and predictive analytics in commercial trucking insurance**. This technology allows competing insurers to offer highly personalized, usage-based insurance and more competitive pricing for safer drivers by precisely assessing individual risk. If Biglari's First Guard Insurance Company does not rapidly adopt and integrate similar advanced analytics, it risks losing its most profitable customers and facing adverse selection.

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Biglari Holdings Inc. (BH) operates in several diverse market segments. The addressable market sizes for its main products and services, primarily within the U.S. region, are as follows:

• Restaurant Operations (Steak 'n Shake, Western Sizzlin'):
  • For quick-service restaurants like Steak 'n Shake, the U.S. quick-service restaurant (QSR) market size is valued at approximately USD 447.2 billion in 2025.
  • For full-service restaurants, including the style of Western Sizzlin', the U.S. full-service restaurant market size stands at USD 360.91 billion in 2025. Within this, the premium steak restaurant market in the U.S. is estimated at about USD 8.3 billion in 2025. The global buffet restaurant market is expected to reach USD 44.5 billion by 2025.
• Insurance Operations (First Guard Insurance Company, Southern Pioneer Property & Casualty Insurance Company):
  • The U.S. property and casualty insurance market, which includes commercial trucking insurance offered by First Guard and the niche property and casualty coverage from Southern Pioneer, was valued at USD 1.10 trillion in 2025.
• Oil and Gas Operations (Southern Oil, Abraxas Petroleum):
  • The market size of the Oil Drilling & Gas Extraction in the U.S. is estimated at USD 484.6 billion in 2025.
• Licensing and Media (Maxim magazine):
  • The global digital media market size was estimated at USD 832.99 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach USD 1,902.28 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 12.8% from 2024 to 2030. North America held the largest revenue share in 2023.
• Investment Management (Biglari Capital Corp.):
  • The assets under management (AUM) in the U.S. investment adviser industry reached $144.6 trillion in 2024. The U.S. asset management market is valued at USD 63.28 trillion in 2025 and is forecast to expand to USD 112.17 trillion by 2030.

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Here are 3-5 expected drivers of future revenue growth for Biglari Holdings (BH) over the next 2-3 years:

1. Continued Same-Store Sales Growth at Steak n Shake: Biglari Holdings' restaurant segment, primarily Steak n Shake, has demonstrated strong same-store sales performance. In the second quarter of 2025, Steak n Shake reported a 10.7% increase in same-store sales for both company-owned and franchise-partner locations. This positive trend continued into the third quarter of 2025, with same-store sales rising by 15.0%. This sustained growth indicates a strong consumer appeal and operational efficiency that is expected to contribute to future revenue.
2. Expansion and Effectiveness of Steak n Shake's Franchise Model: Franchise-partner restaurants have been identified as playing a pivotal role in driving overall sales growth for Steak n Shake. The success across both company-owned and franchise-partner operations highlights the effectiveness of Biglari Holdings' franchise model, suggesting that further expansion or optimization of this model could drive additional revenue.
3. Growth in Maxim's Licensing and Media Ventures: The company's licensing and media segment, primarily Maxim, experienced significant revenue growth in the first quarter of 2025, increasing to $1.4 million from $0.2 million in the prior year. This surge was attributed to a new venture, indicating potential for continued revenue generation from new or expanding licensing and media initiatives.
4. Strategic Acquisitions of Operating Businesses: Biglari Holdings' strategy involves building its portfolio through acquisitions of businesses with excellent economics and exceptional management. The company has a history of adding various operating subsidiaries, including insurance companies and oil and gas properties, and continues to search for "sensible acquisitions that will advance operating earnings over time." This ongoing focus on strategic acquisitions is a key long-term driver for expanding the company's revenue base across diverse business activities.

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Share Repurchases

• Biglari Holdings has achieved a nearly 38% reduction in its share count since 2008, indicating a long-term strategy of share repurchases to enhance per-share intrinsic value.
• As of year-end 2023, treasury stock amounted to $416 million on the balance sheet, reflecting accumulated share repurchases.
• The company effectively buys back its own shares through its investment in The Lion Fund, which holds Biglari Holdings stock that is treated as treasury stock on the consolidated balance sheet.

Share Issuance

• The number of common stock Class A and Class B shares issued and outstanding remained constant at 206,864 and 2,068,640, respectively, from December 31, 2021, through December 31, 2024.

Outbound Investments

• Biglari Holdings acquired Southern Pioneer Property & Casualty Insurance Company in March 2020 for $45.5 million, which included $4.06 million for real estate.
• The company acquired 90% of Abraxas Petroleum in 2022 and the remaining 10% in 2023, contributing to a total investment of $136.9 million for both Abraxas and Southern Oil, with Abraxas returning $52.8 million in cash distributions.
• Biglari Holdings purchased 440,000 shares of Ferrari for $102.2 million, an investment that grew to $189.4 million in value, including dividends, over a two-year period by year-end 2024.
• Since 2020, an additional 69,141 shares of Cracker Barrel were purchased for its insurance subsidiaries.

Capital Expenditures

• Approximately $50 million was invested in 2020 for the transformation of Steak n Shake's business model, which included implementing new point-of-sale systems and self-order kiosks.
• Capital expenditures for the first quarter of 2024 and 2023 were $4.6 million and $3.8 million, respectively.
• Operating businesses are expected to generate substantial cash without needing obligatory reinvestment, allowing this capital to be directed toward new acquisitions.