The Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $2.54B
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Average Volume (3M): 495.12K
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 36.1
• Beta (1Y): 0.97
• Revenue Growth: 8.88%
• EPS Growth: 54.12%
• Country: US
• Employees: 5,029
• Sector: Consumer Defensive
• Sector Strength: 42
• Industry: Food Distribution
• EPS (TTM): 0.50
• Shares Outstanding: 40,685,550
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 571,788
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 495,123
• PEG Ratio: 0.88
• Price to Book (P/B): 3.43
• Price to Sales (P/S): 0.49
• P/FCF Ratio: 17.82
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 1.41
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 1.22
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 5.06
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: 24.00
• 1Y Price Target: $77.14
• Price Target Upside: 23.70% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Strong Buy
• Number of Analyst Covering: 7
• EPS Forecast (FY): 1.89
• Revenue Forecast (FY): $4.06B

• Rating: 64 Neutral
• Price Target: $63.00 ▲(1.03% Upside)

The Chefs' Warehouse receives a moderate score due to strong earnings call performance and positive guidance, which are offset by high leverage, declining free cash flow, and overvaluation concerns. The technical indicators suggest a lack of strong momentum, further balancing the overall assessment.

Positive Factors

Revenue Growth

The consistent revenue growth indicates strong demand for the company's products and successful market penetration, supporting long-term business expansion.

Acquisition Strategy

Strategic acquisitions like Italco Food Products enhance market presence and diversify product offerings, contributing to sustainable growth and competitive advantage.

Market Expansion

Expanding into new markets like the Middle East supports long-term growth by tapping into new customer bases and increasing global footprint.

Negative Factors

High Leverage

High leverage can increase financial risk, limiting flexibility and potentially impacting the company's ability to invest in growth opportunities.

Declining Free Cash Flow

A decline in free cash flow can constrain the company's ability to fund operations, invest in growth, and manage debt, affecting long-term financial health.

Operational Efficiency

Low operational margins suggest inefficiencies that could hinder profitability. Improving these margins is crucial for sustaining long-term competitive advantage.

The Chefs' Warehouse Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

The Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) is a leading distributor of specialty food products in the United States, serving chefs and foodservice operators across various sectors, including fine dining, hotels, and catering companies. The company offers a wide range of high-quality products, including fresh meats, seafood, dairy, produce, and gourmet items, focusing on premium and unique ingredients that cater to culinary professionals.

How the Company Makes Money

The Chefs' Warehouse generates revenue primarily through the distribution of specialty food products to restaurants, hotels, and other foodservice businesses. Its revenue model is based on the wholesale distribution of high-quality ingredients and culinary products, which are sold directly to customers. The company also benefits from strategic partnerships with local and national suppliers, allowing it to offer an extensive product range. Additionally, The Chefs' Warehouse may leverage logistics and delivery services to enhance customer satisfaction and retention, further contributing to its earnings.

The Chefs' Warehouse Financial Statement Overview

Summary

The Chefs' Warehouse shows solid revenue growth and improving profitability with stable gross margins. However, high leverage and declining free cash flow present potential risks. The company should focus on enhancing operational efficiencies and managing debt levels to strengthen its financial position.

Income Statement

The Chefs' Warehouse has shown consistent revenue growth, with a TTM revenue growth rate of 2.07%. Gross profit margin is stable at around 24%, indicating efficient cost management. The net profit margin has improved to 1.76%, reflecting better profitability. However, the EBIT and EBITDA margins are relatively low at 3.58% and 4.94%, respectively, suggesting room for operational efficiency improvements.

Balance Sheet

The company's debt-to-equity ratio is high at 1.67, indicating significant leverage, which could pose financial risks. However, the return on equity has improved to 13.14%, showing effective use of equity to generate profits. The equity ratio stands at 29.24%, suggesting a moderate level of equity financing.

Cash Flow

The operating cash flow to net income ratio is 0.39, indicating moderate cash generation from operations. Free cash flow has declined by 6.89%, which could impact future investments. The free cash flow to net income ratio is 0.74, showing a reasonable conversion of net income to free cash flow.

Breakdown	TTM	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021	Dec 2020
Income Statement
Total Revenue	2.92B	3.79B	3.43B	2.61B	1.75B	1.11B
Gross Profit	705.08M	914.15M	814.47M	618.64M	390.49M	248.15M
EBITDA	148.73M	193.14M	156.55M	125.71M	47.18M	-68.69M
Net Income	45.63M	55.48M	34.59M	27.75M	-4.92M	-82.90M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	1.91B	1.86B	1.71B	1.51B	1.07B	974.33M
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	96.87M	114.66M	49.88M	158.80M	115.16M	193.28M
Total Debt	930.04M	915.83M	926.27M	832.77M	542.48M	530.48M
Total Liabilities	1.35B	1.32B	1.25B	1.10B	723.58M	629.74M
Stockholders Equity	557.72M	537.65M	454.67M	401.51M	350.21M	344.59M
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	53.57M	103.56M	4.21M	-22.71M	-58.70M	35.84M
Operating Cash Flow	83.90M	153.06M	61.64M	23.13M	-19.90M	42.88M
Investing Cash Flow	-30.33M	-49.82M	-179.31M	-232.02M	-48.99M	-67.97M
Financing Cash Flow	-59.11M	-38.48M	9.01M	253.22M	-9.22M	78.06M

The Chefs' Warehouse Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 62.36
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Positive
• MACD: Negative
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Negative

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For CHEF, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 62.36 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 59.82, above the 50-day MA of 60.71, and above the 200-day MA of 60.13, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 0.84 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 57.32 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 86.25 is Negative, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for CHEF.

The Chefs' Warehouse Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
SYY	71 Outperform	$36.00B	20.14	84.89%	2.79%	2.92%	-4.06%
USFD	65 Neutral	$16.38B	30.58	12.29%	―	4.80%	3.49%
CHEF	64 Neutral	$2.54B	36.06	14.12%	―	8.88%	54.12%
PFGC	63 Neutral	$15.48B	47.46	7.42%	―	10.55%	-23.38%
Sector *	62 Neutral	$20.33B	14.63	-3.31%	3.23%	1.93%	-12.26%
SPTN	58 Neutral	―	―	―	―	1.54%	-134.75%
UNFI	52 Neutral	$2.33B	―	-7.39%	―	2.60%	-3.23%

The Chefs' Warehouse Corporate Events

The Chefs’ Warehouse Reports Strong Q3 2025 Results

The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. is a leading distributor of specialty food products, serving chefs and culinary professionals across the United States, the Middle East, and Canada. The company caters to independent restaurants, fine dining establishments, and other culinary venues with a diverse range of over 88,000 products.

The Chefs’ Warehouse Inc. Reports Strong Q3 Earnings and Optimistic Outlook

The Chefs’ Warehouse Inc. recently held its third-quarter earnings call, which painted a generally positive picture of the company’s financial health and strategic direction. The call highlighted robust revenue and profit growth, successful acquisitions, and an optimistic outlook with raised full-year guidance. Despite some challenges, such as the Texas commodity poultry attrition and temporary impacts in the Middle East, the overall sentiment was optimistic, buoyed by ongoing expansion efforts.