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By: Hannah Hammond, 2/9/2026
Company is exiting convenience retail to focus on its other businesses
Jernigan Oil Co. Inc. has sold its convenience retail division to Sunoco Retail LLC.Jernigan Oil Co. Inc. has sold its convenience retail division to Sunoco Retail LLC.
Jernigan Oil Co. Inc. has sold its convenience retail division to Sunoco Retail LLC, an affiliate of Sunoco LP. The sale included 56 Duck Thru Food Stores, Matrix Capital Markets Group Inc., which advised Jernigan Oil on the sale, said on Monday.
Ahoskie, North Carolina-based Jernigan Oil operates a diversified business that includes retail, propane distribution, commercial fuels, fuels transportation and marina operations. It will use the proceeds from the sale of its convenience retail division to reinvest and grow its other businesses, Matrix said.
Jernigan Oil’s Duck Thru Food Stores brand debuted in 1983, in Murfreesboro, North Carolina, and the chain today is regarded as the largest family-owned convenience chain in eastern North Carolina and southern Virginia.
James “Duck” Harrell and his wife Jerri opened that first store, and in 2006, Michael Harrell succeeded his father, Duck, as president of Jernigan Oil Co. Michael Harrell, along with his wife, Billie-Joe, and their children, Miles, Jordan and Mary-Joe, continued to grow the convenience division.
Sunoco LP is No. 96 on CSP’s 2025 Top 202 ranking of U.S. convenience-store chains by store count. Jernigan Oil Co. is No. 126.
Michael Harrell thanked the Matrix team, including Cedric Fortemps, Kyle Tipping and Ethan Sannes, for their “tireless efforts during this process.”
“We would also like to thank our customers for their many years of trust and support,” Michael Harrell said. “Their loyalty has been the foundation of everything we’ve built, and we are deeply grateful. Most importantly, we want to thank our employees for their sacrifices, hard work and dedication to Duck Thru Food Stores and Jernigan Oil Co. The strength and success of this company was built by our employees, and I am sincerely thankful for their commitment, pride and the countless ways they made this journey possible.”
Jernigan retained the real estate at 21 of the 56 stores and will be leasing the stores to Sunoco, Matrix said. Jernigan is no longer operating any of the 56 stores.
Matrix Capital Markets Group, Richmond, Virginia, provides merger and acquisition and financial advisory services for privately held, private-equity owned and publicly traded companies.
Sunoco LP, Dallas, has more than 310 U.S. c-stores. In November, Sunoco closed on a $9.1 billion acquisition of Calgary, Alberta-based Parkland Corp. And in January, Sunoco acquired 36 c-stores from Pops Mart Fuel LLC. Sunoco said in its 2026 guidance that it has a “multi-year path of bolt-on acquisitions totaling at least $500 million annually.”