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

Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($1.1B vs $745.6M, roughly 1.4× ESAB Corp). ESAB Corp runs the higher net margin — 6.6% vs 1.6%, a 5.0% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (11.4% vs 9.9%). Over the past eight quarters, Chefs' Warehouse, Inc.'s revenue compounded faster (5.3% CAGR vs 4.0%).

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.

ESAB, Elektriska Svetsnings-Aktiebolaget, is an American-Swedish industrial company.

CHEF vs ESAB — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
CHEF
CHEF
1.4× larger
CHEF
$1.1B
$745.6M
ESAB
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
CHEF
CHEF
+1.4% gap
CHEF
11.4%
9.9%
ESAB
Higher net margin
ESAB
ESAB
5.0% more per $
ESAB
6.6%
1.6%
CHEF
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
CHEF
CHEF
Annualised
CHEF
5.3%
4.0%
ESAB

Income Statement — Q1 FY2026 vs Q1 FY2026

Metric
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Revenue
$1.1B
$745.6M
Net Profit
$17.4M
$49.2M
Gross Margin
24.3%
36.9%
Operating Margin
3.1%
12.1%
Net Margin
1.6%
6.6%
Revenue YoY
11.4%
9.9%
Net Profit YoY
68.8%
-29.3%
EPS (diluted)
$0.40
$0.78

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
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
$1.1B
$745.6M
Q4 25
$1.1B
$727.8M
Q3 25
$1.0B
$715.6M
Q2 25
$1.0B
$678.1M
Q1 25
$950.7M
Q4 24
$1.0B
$670.8M
Q3 24
$931.5M
$673.3M
Q2 24
$954.7M
$707.1M
Net Profit
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
$17.4M
$49.2M
Q4 25
$21.7M
$54.8M
Q3 25
$19.1M
$66.9M
Q2 25
$21.2M
$67.4M
Q1 25
$10.3M
Q4 24
$23.9M
$53.7M
Q3 24
$14.1M
$68.2M
Q2 24
$15.5M
$82.9M
Gross Margin
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
24.3%
36.9%
Q4 25
24.2%
37.0%
Q3 25
24.2%
37.2%
Q2 25
24.6%
37.6%
Q1 25
23.8%
Q4 24
24.3%
38.5%
Q3 24
24.1%
37.7%
Q2 24
24.0%
38.2%
Operating Margin
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
3.1%
12.1%
Q4 25
3.8%
14.6%
Q3 25
3.8%
15.2%
Q2 25
3.9%
16.2%
Q1 25
2.4%
Q4 24
4.5%
16.6%
Q3 24
3.4%
15.7%
Q2 24
3.5%
16.9%
Net Margin
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
1.6%
6.6%
Q4 25
1.9%
7.5%
Q3 25
1.9%
9.3%
Q2 25
2.1%
9.9%
Q1 25
1.1%
Q4 24
2.3%
8.0%
Q3 24
1.5%
10.1%
Q2 24
1.6%
11.7%
EPS (diluted)
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
$0.40
$0.78
Q4 25
$0.50
$0.90
Q3 25
$0.44
$1.09
Q2 25
$0.49
$1.10
Q1 25
$0.25
Q4 24
$0.56
$0.87
Q3 24
$0.34
$1.11
Q2 24
$0.37
$1.35

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

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

Metric
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$122.7M
$1.0B
Total DebtLower is stronger
$750.4M
$2.0B
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$608.6M
$2.2B
Total Assets
$2.0B
$5.6B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
1.23×
0.91×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
$122.7M
$1.0B
Q4 25
$121.0M
$218.2M
Q3 25
$65.1M
$258.2M
Q2 25
$96.9M
$291.3M
Q1 25
$116.5M
Q4 24
$114.7M
$249.4M
Q3 24
$50.7M
$253.7M
Q2 24
$38.3M
$228.5M
Total Debt
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
$750.4M
$2.0B
Q4 25
$720.3M
$1.3B
Q3 25
$711.7M
$1.1B
Q2 25
$690.2M
$1.1B
Q1 25
$681.1M
Q4 24
$688.7M
$1.1B
Q3 24
$666.6M
$1.1B
Q2 24
$660.8M
$1.1B
Stockholders' Equity
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
$608.6M
$2.2B
Q4 25
$604.3M
$2.1B
Q3 25
$576.6M
$2.1B
Q2 25
$557.7M
$1.9B
Q1 25
$541.6M
Q4 24
$537.6M
$1.8B
Q3 24
$480.3M
$1.8B
Q2 24
$461.9M
$1.7B
Total Assets
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
$2.0B
$5.6B
Q4 25
$2.0B
$4.9B
Q3 25
$1.9B
$4.4B
Q2 25
$1.9B
$4.2B
Q1 25
$1.8B
Q4 24
$1.9B
$4.0B
Q3 24
$1.8B
$4.1B
Q2 24
$1.7B
$4.0B
Debt / Equity
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
1.23×
0.91×
Q4 25
1.19×
0.63×
Q3 25
1.23×
0.51×
Q2 25
1.24×
0.55×
Q1 25
1.26×
Q4 24
1.28×
0.60×
Q3 24
1.39×
0.59×
Q2 24
1.43×
0.63×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

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

Metric
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$38.3M
$46.9M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
0.7%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
2.20×
0.95×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
$38.3M
$46.9M
Q4 25
$73.9M
$81.5M
Q3 25
$-8.7M
$46.6M
Q2 25
$14.5M
$35.4M
Q1 25
$49.6M
Q4 24
$73.0M
$126.9M
Q3 24
$19.8M
$101.0M
Q2 24
$29.3M
$83.0M
Free Cash Flow
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
Q4 25
$65.8M
$70.3M
Q3 25
$-19.7M
$37.4M
Q2 25
$4.5M
$28.1M
Q1 25
$37.2M
Q4 24
$64.6M
$102.2M
Q3 24
$11.8M
$90.4M
Q2 24
$13.3M
$74.0M
FCF Margin
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
Q4 25
5.8%
9.7%
Q3 25
-1.9%
5.2%
Q2 25
0.4%
4.1%
Q1 25
3.9%
Q4 24
6.3%
15.2%
Q3 24
1.3%
13.4%
Q2 24
1.4%
10.5%
Capex Intensity
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
0.7%
Q4 25
0.7%
1.5%
Q3 25
1.1%
1.3%
Q2 25
1.0%
1.1%
Q1 25
1.3%
Q4 24
0.8%
3.7%
Q3 24
0.9%
1.6%
Q2 24
1.7%
1.3%
Cash Conversion
CHEF
CHEF
ESAB
ESAB
Q1 26
2.20×
0.95×
Q4 25
3.41×
1.49×
Q3 25
-0.46×
0.70×
Q2 25
0.68×
0.53×
Q1 25
4.82×
Q4 24
3.05×
2.36×
Q3 24
1.41×
1.48×
Q2 24
1.89×
1.00×

Financial Flow Comparison

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

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