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Side-by-side financial comparison of NOODLES & Co (NDLS) and Vericel Corp (VCEL). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
NOODLES & Co is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($122.1M vs $92.9M, roughly 1.3× Vericel Corp). Vericel Corp runs the higher net margin — 25.0% vs -7.5%, a 32.5% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Vericel Corp posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (23.3% vs -4.1%). Vericel Corp produced more free cash flow last quarter ($12.8M vs $-2.8M). Over the past eight quarters, Vericel Corp's revenue compounded faster (34.6% CAGR vs -1.2%).
Noodles & Company is an American fast-casual restaurant that offers international and American noodle dishes in addition to soups and salads. Noodles & Company was founded in 1995 by Aaron Kennedy and is headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado. The company went public in 2013 and recorded a $457 million revenue in 2017. In mid-2022, there were 458 Noodles & Company locations across 31 states.
Vericel Corporation is a publicly traded American biopharmaceutical company which was known prior to October 2014 as Aastrom Bio. Aastrom Bio was formed in 1989 in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
NDLS vs VCEL — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q3 FY2025 vs Q4 FY2025
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $122.1M | $92.9M |
| Net Profit | $-9.2M | $23.2M |
| Gross Margin | — | 78.7% |
| Operating Margin | -5.2% | 24.1% |
| Net Margin | -7.5% | 25.0% |
| Revenue YoY | -4.1% | 23.3% |
| Net Profit YoY | 32.8% | 17.3% |
| EPS (diluted) | $-0.20 | $0.46 |
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.
| Q4 25 | — | $92.9M | ||
| Q3 25 | $122.1M | $67.5M | ||
| Q2 25 | $123.8M | $63.2M | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $52.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $122.8M | $75.4M | ||
| Q3 24 | $127.4M | $57.9M | ||
| Q2 24 | $121.4M | $52.7M | ||
| Q1 24 | $124.3M | $51.3M |
| Q4 25 | — | $23.2M | ||
| Q3 25 | $-9.2M | $5.1M | ||
| Q2 25 | $-9.1M | $-553.0K | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $-11.2M | ||
| Q4 24 | $-6.8M | $19.8M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-13.6M | $-901.0K | ||
| Q2 24 | $-6.1M | $-4.7M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-6.1M | $-3.9M |
| Q4 25 | — | 78.7% | ||
| Q3 25 | — | 73.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 73.7% | ||
| Q1 25 | — | 69.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 77.6% | ||
| Q3 24 | — | 71.9% | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 69.5% | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 68.9% |
| Q4 25 | — | 24.1% | ||
| Q3 25 | -5.2% | 5.1% | ||
| Q2 25 | -5.2% | -3.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | — | -24.3% | ||
| Q4 24 | -3.9% | 24.5% | ||
| Q3 24 | -9.0% | -4.3% | ||
| Q2 24 | -3.4% | -11.5% | ||
| Q1 24 | -3.7% | -10.7% |
| Q4 25 | — | 25.0% | ||
| Q3 25 | -7.5% | 7.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | -7.3% | -0.9% | ||
| Q1 25 | — | -21.4% | ||
| Q4 24 | -5.5% | 26.3% | ||
| Q3 24 | -10.7% | -1.6% | ||
| Q2 24 | -5.1% | -8.9% | ||
| Q1 24 | -4.9% | -7.5% |
| Q4 25 | — | $0.46 | ||
| Q3 25 | $-0.20 | $0.10 | ||
| Q2 25 | $-0.20 | $-0.01 | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $-0.23 | ||
| Q4 24 | $-0.15 | $0.40 | ||
| Q3 24 | $-0.30 | $-0.02 | ||
| Q2 24 | $-0.14 | $-0.10 | ||
| Q1 24 | $-1.64 | $-0.08 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $4.7M | $137.5M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | — | — |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $-38.9M | $354.6M |
| Total Assets | $280.6M | $488.0M |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | — | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | — | $137.5M | ||
| Q3 25 | $4.7M | $135.4M | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.4M | $116.9M | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $112.9M | ||
| Q4 24 | $3.3M | $116.2M | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.8M | $101.7M | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.3M | $102.5M | ||
| Q1 24 | $3.0M | $110.6M |
| Q4 25 | — | $354.6M | ||
| Q3 25 | $-38.9M | $321.9M | ||
| Q2 25 | $-13.9M | $306.8M | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $295.5M | ||
| Q4 24 | $3.7M | $292.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $9.6M | $257.5M | ||
| Q2 24 | $21.9M | $243.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $27.2M | $233.9M |
| Q4 25 | — | $488.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $280.6M | $453.3M | ||
| Q2 25 | $319.4M | $435.6M | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $424.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $340.5M | $432.7M | ||
| Q3 24 | $346.3M | $390.4M | ||
| Q2 24 | $360.4M | $376.8M | ||
| Q1 24 | $368.1M | $356.7M |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $4.3M | $15.0M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $-2.8M | $12.8M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | -2.3% | 13.8% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 5.8% | 2.4% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | — | 0.65× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $-7.5M | $24.7M |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | — | $15.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $4.3M | $22.1M | ||
| Q2 25 | $4.0M | $8.2M | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $6.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $5.8M | $22.2M | ||
| Q3 24 | $4.7M | $10.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | $7.0M | $18.5M | ||
| Q1 24 | $164.0K | $7.2M |
| Q4 25 | — | $12.8M | ||
| Q3 25 | $-2.8M | $19.5M | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.1M | $81.0K | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $-7.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $-1.3M | $8.5M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-4.5M | $-9.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | $-1.6M | $1.8M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-15.2M | $-6.8M |
| Q4 25 | — | 13.8% | ||
| Q3 25 | -2.3% | 28.8% | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.9% | 0.1% | ||
| Q1 25 | — | -14.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | -1.1% | 11.2% | ||
| Q3 24 | -3.5% | -15.9% | ||
| Q2 24 | -1.4% | 3.4% | ||
| Q1 24 | -12.2% | -13.3% |
| Q4 25 | — | 2.4% | ||
| Q3 25 | 5.8% | 3.9% | ||
| Q2 25 | 2.4% | 12.9% | ||
| Q1 25 | — | 27.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | 5.8% | 18.3% | ||
| Q3 24 | 7.2% | 33.5% | ||
| Q2 24 | 7.1% | 31.8% | ||
| Q1 24 | 12.3% | 27.3% |
| Q4 25 | — | 0.65× | ||
| Q3 25 | — | 4.35× | ||
| Q2 25 | — | — | ||
| Q1 25 | — | — | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 1.12× | ||
| Q3 24 | — | — | ||
| Q2 24 | — | — | ||
| Q1 24 | — | — |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
NDLS
| Food And Beverage | $119.6M | 98% |
| Franchise | $2.5M | 2% |
VCEL
| MACI Implants And Kits | $84.1M | 90% |
| Other | $8.8M | 10% |
