Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.36 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.35 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.33 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items. This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 2.86%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this distributor of specialty food products would post earnings of $0.36 per share when it actually produced earnings of $0.40, delivering a surprise of 11.11%. Over the ...

Financial Performance - Net sales for the thirteen weeks ended September 27, 2024, were $931.5 million, a 5.6% increase from $881.8 million in the prior year[78]. - Gross profit for the same period was $224.7 million, reflecting an 8.2% increase from $207.7 million, with a gross profit margin of 24.1%[79]. - For the thirty-nine weeks ended September 27, 2024, net sales reached $2.76 billion, an 11.2% increase from $2.48 billion, with organic growth contributing $175.8 million[84]. - Gross profit for the thirty-nine weeks was $663.2 million, a 13.2% increase from $585.9 million, with a gross profit margin of 24.0%[86]. Expenses and Income - Selling, general and administrative expenses increased by 7.4% to $192.9 million, representing 20.7% of net sales, up from 20.4%[80]. - Interest expense for the thirteen weeks ended September 27, 2024, was $11.7 million, a 3.2% increase from $11.4 million[82]. - The provision for income tax expense for the thirty-nine weeks was $13.5 million, a 25.1% increase from $10.8 million, with an effective tax rate of 30.0%[90]. Cash Flow and Investments - Net cash provided by operating activities was $80.1 million for the thirty-nine weeks ended September 27, 2024, significantly up from $20.0 million for the same period in the previous year, driven by sales growth and lower inventory purchases[98]. - Net cash used in investing activities totaled $41.4 million, primarily due to capital expenditures of $41.1 million during the same period[99]. - Net cash used in financing activities was $37.8 million, which included $18.5 million in debt payments and $10.0 million for stock repurchases[100]. Debt and Capital Management - The company made voluntary principal prepayments of $12.0 million towards its senior secured term loan during the thirty-nine weeks ended September 27, 2024[93]. - The company made a scheduled principal payment of $5.0 million towards the unsecured note related to the GreenLeaf acquisition during the thirty-nine weeks ended September 27, 2024[94]. - As of September 27, 2024, the company had aggregate indebtedness of $369.6 million, with a potential after-tax earnings decrease of approximately $2.6 million per annum for a 100 basis point increase in market interest rates[103]. Shareholder Returns - A two-year share repurchase program was announced in November 2023, with a target of up to $100.0 million, and 264,076 shares were repurchased at an average price of $37.86 per share, leaving $90.0 million remaining in authorization as of September 27, 2024[95]. Acquisitions - The company acquired Oakville Produce Partners for $88.2 million and Hardie's Fresh Foods for approximately $41.4 million in 2023[74][75]. Operational Capacity - The company expects capital expenditures for fiscal 2024 to be approximately $45.0 million to $50.0 million, indicating a focus on maintaining operational capacity[97]. - Cash and cash equivalents increased to $50.7 million as of September 27, 2024, compared to $49.9 million as of December 29, 2023, while working capital, excluding cash, rose to $312.5 million from $295.3 million[97]. Customer Base - The company serves over 44,000 core customer locations, primarily independent restaurants and fine dining establishments[73].

RIDGEFIELD, Conn., Oct. 16, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ: CHEF) today announced that the Company intends to release its financial results for the third quarter ended September 27, 2024 before the opening of the stock market on Wednesday, October 30, 2024 and host a conference call at 8:30 a.m. ET on Wednesday, October 30, 2024 to review those results. The conference call will be webcast live from the Company's investor relations website at http://investors.chefswarehouse.com/. ...

The Consumer Staples group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Is Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) one of those stocks right now? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Consumer Staples sector should help us answer this question. Chefs' Warehouse is a member of the Consumer Staples sector. This group includes 184 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #11. The Zack ...

The 21-month-long rally of U.S. stock markets has shown no signs of weakening. September is historically the worst-performing month on Wall Street. But is year, with just five trading days left, major indexes are trading in the green month to date. Intermittent volatility, however, may appear due to weak economic data, earnings results below expectation or unforeseen geopolitical conflicts. In this regard, the inclusion of some defensive stocks from the food industry will safeguard your portfolio if the mar ...

Momentum investing is all about the idea of following a stock's recent trend, which can be in either direction. In the 'long' context, investors will essentially be "buying high, but hoping to sell even higher." And for investors following this methodology, taking advantage of trends in a stock's price is key; once a stock establishes a course, it is more than likely to continue moving in that direction. The goal is that once a stock heads down a fixed path, it will lead to timely and profitable trades. Eve ...

Kimberly-Clark Corporation (KMB) experienced a notable increase in its stock price, registering a 20.3% year-to-date increase. This impressive growth surpasses the Zacks Consumer Products - Staples industry's increase of 4.2%. Kimberly-Clark's success is mainly due to its strategic shift towards a volume-and-mix growth model. This approach, which leverages advanced technologies and innovative products, aims to boost operational efficiency. By focusing on supply chain integration and divesting from non-core ...

For those looking to find strong Consumer Staples stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) one of those stocks right now? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Consumer Staples sector should help us answer this question. Chefs' Warehouse is one of 184 companies in the Consumer Staples group. The Consumer Staples group currently sits at #12 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zac ...

Momentum investing is essentially an exception to the idea of "buying low and selling high." Investors following this style of investing are usually not interested in betting on cheap stocks and waiting long for them to recover. Instead, they believe that "buying high and selling higher" is the way to make far more money in lesser time. Who doesn't like betting on fast-moving trending stocks? But determining the right entry point isn't easy. Often, these stocks lose momentum once their valuation moves ahead ...

RIDGEFIELD, Conn., Sept. 03, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (the "Company") (Nasdaq: CHEF), a premier distributor of specialty food products in the United States, the Middle East and Canada, today announced that the Company will participate in a virtual fireside chat at CL King's 22nd Best Ideas Conference on Monday, September 16, 2024. The fireside chat will begin at 8:45 a.m. ET. Investors and interested parties may listen to a webcast of the fireside chat by visiting the Company's in ...