Shares of Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF 2.13%) were climbing today after the restaurant supplier posted better-than-expected results in its third-quarter earnings report.
As a result, the stock was up 14.6% as of 1:17 p.m. ET.
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Chefs' Warehouse is cooking
Chefs' Warehouse delivered strong growth in the third quarter, fueled in part by recent acquisitions. Revenue rose 33.2% to $881.8 million, beating estimates at $832.1 million.
Organic sales in the quarter were up 7.1% to $46.9 million, and the company saw strong growth in the specialty category, with a double-digit increase in customers. Gross margin in the quarter slipped from 23.8% to 23.6%, and selling, general, and administrative expenses as a percentage of revenue rose from 19.7% to 20.4%.
Still, operating income in the quarter rose from $22.1 million to $25.5 million, but higher income tax expense led to adjusted earnings per share falling from $0.41 to $0.33.
Management said business activity improved through the quarter, a bullish signal going forward. CEO Christopher Pappas noted, "As we moved into September, we saw significant sequential improvement in gross profit margins across our markets, and we expect this trend to continue as we move into the fourth quarter and new year."
Guidance gets a boost
Following the strong top-line growth in the third quarter and the bullish commentary from management about the fourth quarter, Chefs' Warehouse raised its revenue guidance from $3.25 billion-$3.35 billion to $3.35 billion to $3.425 billion.
However, it lowered its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) guidance from $199 million-$207 million to $188 million-$196 million.
Still, investors were pleased with the top-line improvements and the progress with integrating the recent acquisitions. Chefs' Warehouse now trades at just 4 times adjusted EBITDA, giving the company a lot of cash to plow back into the growth of the business.
