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Side-by-side financial comparison of A. O. Smith (AOS) and Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (CHEF). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($1.1B vs $945.6M, roughly 1.1× A. O. Smith). A. O. Smith runs the higher net margin — 12.5% vs 1.6%, a 10.8% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (11.4% vs -2.0%). Over the past eight quarters, Chefs' Warehouse, Inc.'s revenue compounded faster (5.3% CAGR vs -3.9%).

A. O. Smith Corporation is an American manufacturer of both residential and commercial water heaters and boilers, and the largest manufacturer and marketer of water heaters in North America. It also supplies water treatment and purification products in the Asian market. The company has 27 locations worldwide, including five manufacturing facilities in North America, as well as plants in Bengaluru in India, Nanjing in China and Veldhoven in The Netherlands.

Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. is a leading North American specialty food distributor that primarily serves independent restaurants, fine dining venues, hotels, catering firms, and other foodservice operators. It offers a curated portfolio of over 150,000 products including artisanal ingredients, specialty meats, seafood, dairy, pastries, and imported gourmet goods tailored for professional chefs.

AOS vs CHEF — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
CHEF
CHEF
1.1× larger
CHEF
$1.1B
$945.6M
AOS
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
CHEF
CHEF
+13.4% gap
CHEF
11.4%
-2.0%
AOS
Higher net margin
AOS
AOS
10.8% more per $
AOS
12.5%
1.6%
CHEF
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
CHEF
CHEF
Annualised
CHEF
5.3%
-3.9%
AOS

Income Statement — Q1 FY2026 vs Q1 FY2026

Metric
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Revenue
$945.6M
$1.1B
Net Profit
$118.0M
$17.4M
Gross Margin
38.7%
24.3%
Operating Margin
3.1%
Net Margin
12.5%
1.6%
Revenue YoY
-2.0%
11.4%
Net Profit YoY
-14.0%
68.8%
EPS (diluted)
$0.85
$0.40

Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.

8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend

Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.

Revenue
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
$945.6M
$1.1B
Q4 25
$912.5M
$1.1B
Q3 25
$942.5M
$1.0B
Q2 25
$1.0B
$1.0B
Q1 25
$963.9M
$950.7M
Q4 24
$912.4M
$1.0B
Q3 24
$902.6M
$931.5M
Q2 24
$1.0B
$954.7M
Net Profit
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
$118.0M
$17.4M
Q4 25
$125.4M
$21.7M
Q3 25
$132.0M
$19.1M
Q2 25
$152.2M
$21.2M
Q1 25
$136.6M
$10.3M
Q4 24
$109.7M
$23.9M
Q3 24
$120.1M
$14.1M
Q2 24
$156.2M
$15.5M
Gross Margin
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
38.7%
24.3%
Q4 25
38.4%
24.2%
Q3 25
38.7%
24.2%
Q2 25
39.3%
24.6%
Q1 25
38.9%
23.8%
Q4 24
37.1%
24.3%
Q3 24
37.4%
24.1%
Q2 24
38.7%
24.0%
Operating Margin
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
3.1%
Q4 25
17.9%
3.8%
Q3 25
18.6%
3.8%
Q2 25
20.4%
3.9%
Q1 25
19.1%
2.4%
Q4 24
10.1%
4.5%
Q3 24
19.5%
3.4%
Q2 24
21.9%
3.5%
Net Margin
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
12.5%
1.6%
Q4 25
13.7%
1.9%
Q3 25
14.0%
1.9%
Q2 25
15.0%
2.1%
Q1 25
14.2%
1.1%
Q4 24
12.0%
2.3%
Q3 24
13.3%
1.5%
Q2 24
15.2%
1.6%
EPS (diluted)
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
$0.85
$0.40
Q4 25
$0.89
$0.50
Q3 25
$0.94
$0.44
Q2 25
$1.07
$0.49
Q1 25
$0.95
$0.25
Q4 24
$0.75
$0.56
Q3 24
$0.82
$0.34
Q2 24
$1.06
$0.37

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$185.2M
$122.7M
Total DebtLower is stronger
$574.2M
$750.4M
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$1.9B
$608.6M
Total Assets
$3.7B
$2.0B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
0.31×
1.23×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
$185.2M
$122.7M
Q4 25
$193.2M
$121.0M
Q3 25
$172.8M
$65.1M
Q2 25
$177.9M
$96.9M
Q1 25
$200.2M
$116.5M
Q4 24
$276.1M
$114.7M
Q3 24
$255.6M
$50.7M
Q2 24
$233.3M
$38.3M
Total Debt
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
$574.2M
$750.4M
Q4 25
$155.0M
$720.3M
Q3 25
$711.7M
Q2 25
$690.2M
Q1 25
$681.1M
Q4 24
$193.2M
$688.7M
Q3 24
$666.6M
Q2 24
$660.8M
Stockholders' Equity
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
$1.9B
$608.6M
Q4 25
$1.9B
$604.3M
Q3 25
$1.8B
$576.6M
Q2 25
$1.8B
$557.7M
Q1 25
$1.9B
$541.6M
Q4 24
$1.9B
$537.6M
Q3 24
$1.9B
$480.3M
Q2 24
$1.9B
$461.9M
Total Assets
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
$3.7B
$2.0B
Q4 25
$3.1B
$2.0B
Q3 25
$3.2B
$1.9B
Q2 25
$3.2B
$1.9B
Q1 25
$3.3B
$1.8B
Q4 24
$3.2B
$1.9B
Q3 24
$3.2B
$1.8B
Q2 24
$3.2B
$1.7B
Debt / Equity
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
0.31×
1.23×
Q4 25
0.08×
1.19×
Q3 25
1.23×
Q2 25
1.24×
Q1 25
1.26×
Q4 24
0.10×
1.28×
Q3 24
1.39×
Q2 24
1.43×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$38.3M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$118.9M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
12.6%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
1.1%
0.7%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
2.20×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$647.5M

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
$38.3M
Q4 25
$183.1M
$73.9M
Q3 25
$255.4M
$-8.7M
Q2 25
$139.6M
$14.5M
Q1 25
$38.7M
$49.6M
Q4 24
$221.9M
$73.0M
Q3 24
$195.9M
$19.8M
Q2 24
$57.4M
$29.3M
Free Cash Flow
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
$118.9M
Q4 25
$165.5M
$65.8M
Q3 25
$240.6M
$-19.7M
Q2 25
$122.5M
$4.5M
Q1 25
$17.4M
$37.2M
Q4 24
$191.3M
$64.6M
Q3 24
$163.4M
$11.8M
Q2 24
$34.5M
$13.3M
FCF Margin
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
12.6%
Q4 25
18.1%
5.8%
Q3 25
25.5%
-1.9%
Q2 25
12.1%
0.4%
Q1 25
1.8%
3.9%
Q4 24
21.0%
6.3%
Q3 24
18.1%
1.3%
Q2 24
3.4%
1.4%
Capex Intensity
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
1.1%
0.7%
Q4 25
1.9%
0.7%
Q3 25
1.6%
1.1%
Q2 25
1.7%
1.0%
Q1 25
2.2%
1.3%
Q4 24
3.4%
0.8%
Q3 24
3.6%
0.9%
Q2 24
2.2%
1.7%
Cash Conversion
AOS
AOS
CHEF
CHEF
Q1 26
2.20×
Q4 25
1.46×
3.41×
Q3 25
1.93×
-0.46×
Q2 25
0.92×
0.68×
Q1 25
0.28×
4.82×
Q4 24
2.02×
3.05×
Q3 24
1.63×
1.41×
Q2 24
0.37×
1.89×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

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