CHEF vs UNFI Stock Comparison

Chefs' Warehouse and United Natural Foods Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
CHEF Chefs' Warehouse, Inc.
$105.88 -2.8% 1M +80.2% 1Y
Market cap
$4.14B
P/E
45.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$4.39B
Div. yield
–
Food Distribution Consumer Staples
8 wins
UNFI United Natural Foods Inc
$46.95 +7.3% 1M +17.8% 1Y
Market cap
$2.94B
P/E
35.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$31.15B
Div. yield
–
Food Distribution Consumer Staples
3 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Chefs' Warehouse leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (Chefs' Warehouse 8, United Natural Foods 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCHEFUNFILeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $4.14B $2.94B CHEF
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 45.0x 35.0x UNFI
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 43.0x 13.4x UNFI
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +11.2% -2.0% CHEF
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 2.1% 0.3% CHEF
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 8.8% 5.4% CHEF
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.3x 3.0x CHEF
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +80.2% +17.8% CHEF
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +27.6%/yr +1.3%/yr CHEF
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 37.3% 42.3% CHEF
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 45/100 51/100 UNFI

Percentile Scorecard

CHEFUNFI

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCHEFUNFI
Valuation 18 #33 of 40 82 #8 of 40
Growth 89 #5 of 38 76 #10 of 38
Profitability 47 #20 of 37 33 #25 of 37
Financial Health 56 #18 of 40 28 #29 of 40
Shareholder Returns 15 #24 of 28 33 #19 of 28
Overall 45 51
  • CHEF ranked among 41 companies in Staples Retail
  • UNFI ranked among 41 companies in Staples Retail

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCHEFUNFISPY
1 month -2.8%+7.3% -1.0%
3 months +11.6%-5.4% +2.9%
6 months +61.7%-2.5% +6.4%
Year to date +69.9%+39.4% +11.4%
1 year +80.2%+17.8% +13.1%
3 years +455.5%+215.3% +79.4%
3 years, per year +77.2%+46.7% +21.5%
5 years +237.7%+6.4% +67.7%
5 years, per year +27.6%+1.3% +10.9%
10 years +748.4%+14.8% +255.2%
10 years, per year +23.8%+1.4% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureCHEFUNFISPY
Volatility, 1Y 37.3%42.3% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 32.3%43.1% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.530.37 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 2.150.42 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -56.1%-84.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -9.1%-15.4% -2.5%
52-week high $116.42$55.52 $779.14
52-week low $57.27$31.42 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCHEFUNFI
P/E now vs peer median 44.8xmedian 21.6x 33.9xmedian 21.6x
P/S now vs peer median 1.0xmedian 0.5x 0.1xmedian 0.5x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 19.2xmedian 9.7x 8.5xmedian 9.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 34.3xmedian 17.8x 8.8xmedian 17.8x
P/B now vs peer median 6.7xmedian 3.0x 1.7xmedian 3.0x
PEG now vs peer median 0.70median 1.06 0.68median 1.06

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCHEFUNFI
Revenue $4.39B $31.15B
Gross profit $1.07B $4.20B
Operating income $173.92M $211.00M
Net income $91.97M $84.00M
Free cash flow $125.77M $323.00M
EPS (diluted) $2.00 $1.34
Cash & equivalents $135.47M $37.00M
Total debt $724.68M $1.57B
Shares (diluted) 46.05M 62.80M
Enterprise value $3.69B $2.77B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCHEFUNFI
P/E 44.8x 33.9x
P/FCF 34.3x 8.8x
P/Operating cash flow 26.7x 5.2x
P/S 1.0x 0.1x
P/B 6.7x 1.7x
P/Tangible book 8.3x 2.5x
EV/EBITDA 19.2x 8.5x
EV/EBIT 28.2x 20.7x
EV/Revenue 1.1x 0.1x
EV/FCF 39.0x 13.5x
EV/Operating cash flow 30.3x 8.1x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.70 0.68

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCHEFUNFI
Revenue growth (1Y) 11.2% -2.0%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 12.9% 1.0%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 12.3% -0.6%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 14.1% 0.5%
Operating income growth (1Y) 23.1% 780.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 25.0% 20.7%
Net income growth (1Y) 32.2% 171.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 64.3% 40.9%
EPS growth (1Y) 32.2% 168.2%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 63.8% 50.1%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 3.1% 14.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 125.4% -4.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 6.4% 35.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 81.8% 2.4%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCHEFUNFI
Gross margin 24.5% 13.5%
EBITDA margin 5.8% 1.6%
Operating margin 4.0% 0.7%
Pretax margin 3.0% 0.3%
Net margin 2.1% 0.3%
FCF margin 2.9% 1.0%
Operating cash flow margin 3.7% 1.7%
Return on equity 14.6% 5.2%
Return on assets 4.6% 1.2%
Return on invested capital 8.8% 5.4%
Return on capital employed 11.2% 4.5%
Asset turnover 2.2x 4.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.8x 6.4x
Stock comp / revenue 0.6% 0.2%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCHEFUNFI
Debt / assets 35.8% 22.0%
Debt / equity 1.1x 1.0x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.3x 3.0x
Debt / FCF 5.8x 4.8x
Liabilities / assets 68.0% 77.2%
Equity / assets 32.0% 22.8%
Interest coverage 4.3x 1.7x
Current ratio 2.1x 1.3x
Quick ratio 1.2x 0.4x
Cash ratio 0.3x 0.0x
Altman Z-score 4.81 5.13

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCHEFUNFI
Dividend yield – –
Net buyback yield 0.3% 0.9%
Shareholder yield 0.3% 0.9%
Payout ratio (earnings) – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCHEFUNFI
Forward P/E 43.0xFY2026 13.4xFY2027
EPS, next fiscal year $2.46FY2026 $3.50FY2027
EPS growth, next FY +29.5%FY2026 +32.1%FY2027
EPS growth, the year after +22.0% +22.3%
Revenue, next fiscal year $4.39BFY2026 $32.45BFY2027
Revenue growth, next FY +5.9%FY2026 +4.2%FY2027
Revenue growth, the year after +7.4% -3.6%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCHEFUNFI
Held by institutions 100.0% 93.7%
Institutions holding 286 359
Change in shares held, QoQ -0.3% -0.6%
Institutions buying 171 185
Institutions selling 89 116
Buyers to sellers 1.92 1.59

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CHEFUNFI
CHEF 1.00 0.30
UNFI 0.30 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CHEF and UNFI?

Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) is the largest by market capitalisation: Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) $4.14B, United Natural Foods (UNFI) $2.94B.

Which stock is cheaper, CHEF and UNFI?

United Natural Foods (UNFI) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) 45.0x, United Natural Foods (UNFI) 35.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, United Natural Foods (UNFI) is cheapest (Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) 43.0x, United Natural Foods (UNFI) 13.4x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) +11.2%, United Natural Foods (UNFI) -2.0%.

Which company is more profitable?

Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) has the highest net margin (Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) 2.1%, United Natural Foods (UNFI) 0.3%). On return on invested capital, Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) leads (Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) 8.8%, United Natural Foods (UNFI) 5.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) returned the most: Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) +80.2%, United Natural Foods (UNFI) +17.8%. Over five years, Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) compounded fastest (Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) +27.6%/yr, United Natural Foods (UNFI) +1.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) has been the steadiest (Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) 37.3%, United Natural Foods (UNFI) 42.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do CHEF and UNFI move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.30, a weak relationship. Holding both diversifies more than two closely linked stocks would.

Which is the better stock, CHEF and UNFI?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Chefs' Warehouse (CHEF) leads on 8. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.