Sardar Biglari says he's glad proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services thinks the ROI of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store's new restaurants is an important factor for investors to consider as they weigh their options ahead of this Thursday's annual shareholders' meeting. But Biglari, who wants two board seats to represent his 18 percent stake in Lebanon-based Cracker Barrel, disagrees with how ISS interprets the data Cracker Barrel has disclosed.

ISS' above statement is factually wrong. An estimate of $270,000 per store of incremental G&A expense rather than $235,000 per store in our analysis would reduce return on investment. Yet ISS concludes that return increased from 3.7% to 10.7% — a mathematical impossibility! We urge shareholders to do their own analysis.

The two most prominent firms advising investors on how to vote their shares have issued different recommendations on a call for Corrections Corp. of America to step up its reporting of sexual abuse at its facilities. Activist Alex Friedman wants Nashville-based CCA to report twice annually on its efforts to prevent sexual abuse. The company says it is doing what it needs to now and is waiting on final reporting standards from the Department of Justice. In a letter to shareholders, CCA General Counsel Steve Groom outlines the company's reasoning and says advisory firm Glass Lewis agrees with its opposition to Friedman's proposal. ISS, on the other hand, has told shareholders to side with Friedman.

We believe, like Glass Lewis, that the proposal’s request for bi-annual reports is overly prescriptive. The Board and management of our company should have the discretion to determine the timing and scope of data reporting within the context of the evolving requirements of government agencies, such as the DOJ, and our partners.

Investors in Healthcare Realty Trust last week approved — albeit in a non-binding advisory vote — the executive compensation plans for the real estate investment trust's senior executives. The roughly 2-to-1 vote at the company's annual shareholders' meeting came two weeks after proxy advisor ISS recommended that investors turn down the pay plan for CEO David Emery, a move Healthcare Realty objected to vehemently.