The Chefs’ Warehouse reported higher sales and earnings for the third quarter ended Sept. 25, 2026, with growth across its specialty and center-of-the-plate businesses. Revenue rose 11.2% year over year to $1.14 billion, while gross margin improved and net income increased.
The specialty-food distributor said customer activity strengthened into September and continued into October. Its chief executive also said Middle East operations remained effective in a challenging environment, with revenue in recent weeks at about the prior-year level.
Key details
- Sales growth was mostly organic. Net sales increased by $115.4 million from a year earlier. Organic sales contributed $105.4 million, or 10.3% growth; acquisitions contributed another $8.7 million, or 0.9%.
- Customer and volume measures advanced. Specialty-category case count rose about 6.1%, while unique customers increased 4.4% and unique item placements rose 7.2%. Pounds sold in the center-of-the-plate category increased about 6.6%.
- Gross profit and margins improved. Gross profit rose 15.0% to $284.3 million. Gross margin increased about 84 basis points to 25.0%, with gains of 63 basis points in specialty and 137 basis points in center-of-the-plate.
- Net income and earnings per share increased. GAAP net income was $29.6 million, or $0.67 per diluted share, compared with $19.1 million, or $0.44 per share, a year earlier. Adjusted earnings per share were $0.66, up from $0.50.
- Adjusted EBITDA also rose. It reached $82.2 million, compared with $65.1 million in the prior-year quarter.
- Operating costs grew alongside the business. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased 12.1% to $233.4 million. The company attributed the rise to compensation and benefits, facilities and distribution costs supporting sales growth, fuel, and higher depreciation tied to facility and fleet investments.
- Management described continued momentum. The company said revenue followed its usual seasonal pattern, building from summer into September, and that momentum carried into October ahead of the holiday season. In the Middle East, recent revenue was approximately 100% of the year-earlier level, which management linked to returning local residents and expatriates after the summer.
Plain-English implications
The quarter’s sales increase came primarily from organic growth, with acquisitions adding a smaller contribution. Gross profit grew faster than sales and margins widened, while earnings rose substantially from the year-earlier quarter. At the same time, selling and administrative costs increased slightly faster than revenue, reflecting both the expense of supporting growth and higher operating costs.