Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company achieved record full-year adjusted EBITDA of $1.74 billion, with a 22 basis point expansion in adjusted EBITDA margin to 4.6% [12][15][45] - Adjusted diluted EPS increased by 19.8% to $3.15, reflecting strong earnings growth [45][56] - Fourth quarter net sales rose by 6.2% to $9.5 billion, driven by total case volume growth of 3.5% and food cost inflation [41][45] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - Independent restaurant volume grew by 3.2%, while healthcare and hospitality case volumes increased by 4.7% and 2.4%, respectively [17][41] - Adjusted gross profit grew by 7.3% to $6.6 billion, with significant savings achieved through strategic vendor management [35][45] - The company reported a 240 basis point faster growth in adjusted gross profit dollars compared to adjusted operating expense dollars in Q4 [44][47] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - Chain restaurant foot traffic was down less than 2% in Q4, showing sequential improvement from Q3 [16] - Independent restaurant industry volume was down less than 1%, consistent with the previous quarter [16] - The company outperformed the market with a 3.2% increase in total independent case volume, marking the 15th consecutive quarter of share gains [17][20] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company aims for a 5% sales CAGR and a 10% adjusted EBITDA CAGR through 2027, focusing on sustained growth and capital return to shareholders [13][61] - The strategic pillars include culture, service, growth, and profit, with a strong emphasis on safety, delivery efficiency, and private label brand expansion [22][25][30] - The company is committed to M&A activities, having completed the acquisition of IWC and Jake's Finer Foods, enhancing local capacity and market presence [33][34][102] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed confidence in a stronger macro backdrop for 2025 compared to 2024, with expectations for improved foot traffic and case growth [43][89] - The company remains focused on controlling costs and driving share gains across its target customer types, despite external challenges [92][93] - Management highlighted the importance of self-help initiatives and operational discipline in achieving future growth [56][61] Other Important Information - The company donated over $14.5 million to support hunger relief and disaster efforts in 2024 [25] - The rollout of Descartes routing technology is expected to enhance delivery efficiency and customer experience [26][28] - The company is nearing the conclusion of exploring the sale of CHEF'STORE, with plans to use proceeds for share repurchases [37] Q&A Session Summary Question: What percentage of your offering do you import overall? - The majority of products are produced in the U.S., with low to mid-single-digit imports from affected countries [65] Question: How do you think about independent case growth assumptions? - Most growth comes from new account generation, with strong performance in December positioning for future growth [70] Question: Can you discuss independent case growth expectations for the year? - The company expects to bridge back to the 5% to 8% target as foot traffic improves [76] Question: What metrics give you confidence in a stronger macro backdrop for 2025? - Sources like Technomic predict healthy improvement, and the company expects stability post-election [90] Question: How is the private label brand expansion expected to ramp further in 2025? - The company has regained supply capability and launched innovative products, supporting private label growth [135] Question: What is the CapEx guidance for this year? - The guidance is set at $375 million to $425 million, reflecting a step-up from the previous year [123]

US Foods (USFD) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.84 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.80 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.64 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items.This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 5%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this company would post earnings of $0.82 per share when it actually produced earnings of $0.85, delivering a surprise of 3.66%.Over the last four quarters, the company has surpasse ...

UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 _____________________________ FORM 8-K _____________________________ CURRENT REPORT Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 Date of Report (Date of Earliest Event Reported): January 13, 2025 _____________________________ 9399 W. Higgins Road, Suite 100 Rosemont, IL 60018 (Address of principal executive offices) (Zip code) (847) 720-8000 (Registrant's telephone number, including area code) Not Applicable US ...

Momentum investing is essentially the opposite of the tried-and-tested Wall Street adage -- "buy low and sell high." Investors following this investing style typically avoid betting on cheap stocks and waiting long for them to recover. They believe instead that one could make far more money in lesser time by "buying high and selling higher."Everyone likes betting on fast-moving trending stocks, but it isn't easy to determine the right entry point. These stocks often lose momentum when their future growth po ...

Investors interested in stocks from the Food - Miscellaneous sector have probably already heard of US Foods (USFD) and Lamb Weston (LW) . But which of these two companies is the best option for those looking for undervalued stocks? Let's take a closer look.We have found that the best way to discover great value opportunities is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with a great grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system. The proven Zacks Rank emphasizes companies with positive estimate revision trends, an ...

The market expects US Foods (USFD) to deliver a year-over-year increase in earnings on higher revenues when it reports results for the quarter ended December 2024. This widely-known consensus outlook is important in assessing the company's earnings picture, but a powerful factor that might influence its near-term stock price is how the actual results compare to these estimates.The earnings report, which is expected to be released on February 13, 2025, might help the stock move higher if these key numbers ar ...

Momentum investors typically don't time the market or "buy low and sell high." In other words, they avoid 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.Everyone likes betting on fast-moving trending stocks, but it isn't easy to determine the right entry point. These stocks often lose momentum when their future growth potential fails to justify their swelled-up valuation. In that phase ...

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Investors interested in Food - Miscellaneous stocks are likely familiar with US Foods (USFD) and Lamb Weston (LW) . But which of these two stocks offers value investors a better bang for their buck right now? We'll need to take a closer look.Everyone has their own methods for finding great value opportunities, but our model includes pairing an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system with a strong Zacks Rank. The Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends ...

For those looking to find strong Consumer Staples stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Has US Foods (USFD) been one of those stocks this year? 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.US Foods is one of 181 individual stocks in the Consumer Staples sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #14 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank ...